The Trials
by LenniluvsBrian
Summary: The turtles and their siblings are teenagers now. The boys can go up top when they please, but what do the girls have to do to be able to have the same privileges as their brothers? Well, almost the same priviledges. Story courtesy of Daydream. Plz R&R.
1. The Trials

A.N.: Ziptango, Daydream, Raphiella, TygeroftheWynd, Mily and Lenni are all twelve. Danceingfae, Machias, Splinter, HexAdecimal, TMNTPunker, Arista are all thirteen. The guys are eighteen.

Disclaimer: I only own Ziptango & Daydream because I can. Oh, & I own myself too! Almost forgot. Lol. But, everyone else owns themselves, and Daydream actually owns this story. I'm just posting it for her, as it goes with _Stinking Babies_ and _The Understanding Brother_ – both, of which I know need to be updated.

My Contribution: Editing, & Posting.

Note: This story comes after "Understanding Brother". Though neither of the stories before this are finished, I decided to finally post this. So y'all know, this was written by Daydream. She told me to do what I want with it, so I have.

Enjoy!

* * *

Hex gazed up at the ceiling of her room from the comfy mattress on her bed. She was quite satisfied with herself. Having finished with the trials her Sensei placed on his pupils, she was now allowed to go out with her other family members to do battle against Oroku Saki and his Foot ninjas. 

Nobody knew about her success yet, but they'd obviously find out at dinner when all the important announcements were made. Hexadecimal sighed with pleasure; this was great. No more nights of sitting on the couch and wondering when her brothers and sisters would return, no more being told to go away while the others were planning a battle. She would be included in all nightly escapades whether her brothers liked it or not. She would be the third of her sisters to be permitted to join the group of teenage ninjas. And why not? She had just as much or more skill as a warrior than Danceingfae or Punker and definitely as much reason to fight. Why, if she'd had it her way she would have been fighting at least a year before now... A knock on the door kicked her out of her now simmering thoughts.

"Wha do ya want?" Hex grumbled, pulling herself in a sitting position.

The door burst open and she was immediately set upon by two of her sisters. They pulled her off the bed and onto the floor. A white and blue bandanna, and a crimson red one gave them away as Raphiella and Tyger, the two younger siblings that she always had to battle with for Raphael's attention. They were all grins as they bounded into the room. Tyger set herself down on Hex's bed while Ella sat down right next to Hex. She gave her famous smirk to let Hex know she already knew everything. Tyger was the first one that burst out though.

"You passed the trials! You're finally a full-fledged ninja!" She bounced on the bed with excitement even though she was a disciplined twelve-year-old.

Hex shrugged, not even giving a thought to how her sisters knew. They had probably been hiding up in the beams during the trial.

"No, not really. More like a ninja trainee," she said thoughtfully.

You couldn't go out farther than five blocks up top without an older brother until you were fifteen and passed the real Trials. Still, anything was better than the one block everyone else got.

Ella smiled at her sister. "Hex really deserves this," she thought to herself.

"I wish I was old enough to take the trials! Heck, I bet I could beat you at them!" Tyger exclaimed and winked at Hex.

The older girl rolled her eyes at her younger sister.

"Yeah right, Ty. You couldn't beat yourself out of a soggy paper bag," Raphiella teased with the right amount of bite to make Tyger bristle.

Hex gave both of them 'The Look'. "Chill," she demanded, "or get out."

Tyger flung up her hands in defense and surrendered while Ella raised her eye ridges at Hex's commands.

"Oh, so now we get to take orders from the ninja 'trainee'," Raphiella joked and gently pushed Hex's knee. Hex nodded with a certain teasing aloofness.

"You better believe it." Hexadecimal pushed herself up from the floor in one quick, effortless motion. Making herself look as much like her brother in blue as possible, she ordered her sisters out of her room.

They giggled but agreed seeing as they didn't have much choice. As they left, Hex gave them a passing request. "Don't tell anybody, got it?" They nodded and quickly left Hex to herself.

The teenager grinned at the privacy she so rarely got. She took out her pair of sai from the belt she wore around her waist and laid them gently, almost lovingly on her pillow. The silver weapons gleamed welcomingly in the light of her beside lamp. Then she noticed the smudging on one of the three blades. Hex quickly snatched it up for a closer look. Sure enough, there was a fingerprint smudge.

"Now that won't do," she muttered to no one but herself.

Grumbling as loud as she pleased, she pulled open the side table drawer and removed a rag. Setting herself to task, she wondered how everyone would react to the news of her promotion. Leo would probably try to contest it as he always did when one of the girls passed Master Splinter's trials; he seriously had problems when it came to being protective. Donny and Mikey would probably decide that she was going to be Raphael's charge and congratulate her on her new position on the team. Raphael would most likely be happy that she passed until he found out that he was going to be her up top mentor. Leo and Mikey already had Danceingfae and Punker meaning she got Raph since Donnie would be getting Machias before long. Hex didn't mind though. She enjoyed Raph's company where some of her other siblings did not. She knew his reactions as well as Master Splinter and he was her favorite brother if she had to choose one. Her sisters' reactions would be a wild mix of emotions ranging from envy to joy to indifference. With eleven of them there would be plenty of the in-between stuff. Master Splinter had seemed happy that she'd passed.

Hex grinned as she realized that she was rubbing the blade through the cloth. She put it down and went out into the main lair.

As maddening as living in a household of seventeen usually was, dinnertime had to be the craziest time of day. There was always a mad dash for the table even though everyone was always served before they were allowed to eat. Now was wash-up time. Lenni made a show of coming in from the sewers with Raph on her tail, both of them covered in some indescribable material. The bathroom vacated quickly to let the two of them in. A rush of people into the kitchen sent Mikey, Danceingfae, and Daydream fussing like old hens.

The two younger turtles had been recruited by Mikey as his personal kitchen helpers; Dance as general kitchen duties and Day as a dessert and appetizer specialist. The two groups had been dispersed into smaller sections and now only handled breakfast and lunch, leaving all dinner preparation to the three who were excused from the earlier food endeavors. It had taken many long years to train the two girls but they were now allowed to make dinner without supervision as long as Daydream didn't touch the entrée. She'd been banned from entrées after a cooking disaster had almost left them kitchen-less and had given her a large burn mark on her left hand. She was most adept at making the sugary and artful parts of the meal though so they left her at that. Dance was quickly becoming as skilled in all manners of cooking as Mikey and rarely had any mishaps in 'her' kitchen.

Danceingfae had been putting the finishing touches on the entree when the crowd of turtles came rushing into the kitchen to escape Lenni and Raphael's filthiness.

"Hey! What're you doin'?!" Mikey yelped as he was forcefully removed from the sink.

TMNTPunker gave him a rueful smile as she quickly soaped up her hands. "Calm down Mikey, we'll be out of your way in a second," she reassured him.

Leo rolled his eyes as Danceingfae and Daydream quickly covered up any trace of dinner. They jealously guarded their meals until it was time for them to be eaten. He barely had time to wonder what Day was hurriedly stashing in the fridge before Dance had brandished a spatula and began to demand that they leave.

"Out! Get out of my kitchen! There's a bathroom down the hall if you didn't know," she exclaimed, whacking Machias in the shoulder.

The girl fended off her sister with a free hand. "Lenni and Raph threw us all outta there. They're covered in mud crap," she informed and brushed past the angry girl to get to the sink.

Dance tugged her auburn-blonde hair in frustration. The kitchen was the only thing she was actually defensive about.

"Mikey, make them leave! We've got more than one bathroom," Dance appealed to her orange wearing brother.

He smiled at the girl. "It's all right, Dance, they'll leave in a few minutes," Michelangelo assured her. He bent down and quickly whispered in her ear, "They'll just have to wait longer for dinner."

Danceingfae grinned in realization of her absolute power over them.

Meanwhile, Daydream was trying to fight her way to the oven but a very stubborn Splinter was in her way.

"Aw, c'mon Splinna, just move for a second!" she begged, her eyes darting to the swiftly burning Italian breadsticks. The air was already beginning to get that burnt tinge. Day looked at Mikey for help but he was busy trying to get to his salad through the sea of bodies. She definitely couldn't ask Leo for help, he was still unhappy about the other disaster. It wouldn't do if something of hers burnt again; they'd probably kick her out of the kitchen for good. She clenched her fists in desperation. "Please move, Splinter."

Splinter rolled her eyes. "Man, Day, all you had to do was say the magic word," she laughed. As she walked past she gave her little sister's tye-dyed bandanna tails a teasing tug.

Daydream's head jerked back, pulling her away from the oven. The younger girl whipped her bandanna out of Splinter's hand and then swiftly returned to her precious breadsticks.

Dance, after seeing Splinter's smug look, went to help Day out.

After a while the kitchen vacated and the three workers went into a frenzy to finish in time.

Soon enough, everyone was seated and ready for dinner to start. Lenni who usually started all mischief n the house gave Ziptango an impish look and began to softly tap on the table with her fork and spoon. Zip returned the smile; she joined in on the insistent tapping. On the other side on the table, Mily also caught the rhythm with her silverware. Next came a giggling Raphiella followed by Tyger who grinned as she tapped louder than the others. TMNTPunker caught it next; beside her Splinter hesitated a second before adding her taps to the now accelerating tempo. After that Machias gave her other sisters a smile and also joined the roar. Donatello gave in next, his taps quickly assimilating with the others. Raphael rolled his eyes but the beat was catchy. Tap-tap-bang, tap-tap-bang, tap-tap-BANG. He couldn't help but add his own noise to that could he? Nope. Arista slowly slid her eyes toward Leo. He certainly wouldn't join in on this...She laughed aloud when he grabbed his fork and spoon and joyfully enhanced the cacophony. Pretty soon the entire table except for Master Splinter had caught the dinner tap fever. Hexadecimal was the last to join in, her taps becoming the loudest. Machias was the one who actually started the song but everyone jumped in until the entire turtle part of the family was sending up a terrible racket of untrained voices trying to sing and scream at the same time.

"Here we sit like birds in the wilderness, birds in the wilderness, BIRDS IN THE WILDERNESS, here we sit like birds in the wilderness, waiting to be fed! HummmMMM, HuummMMM!"

Lenni began the second verse with her usual childish enthusiasm. "Here we sit like flies on a trashcan, flies on a trashcan, FLIES ON A TRASHCAN, here we sit like flies on a trash can, waiting to be fed!! HummMMM, HhhuuuMMMM!"

Arista took the third verse by storm. "Here we sit like ants on a picnic table, ants on a picnic table, ANTS ON A PICNIC TABLE, here we sit like ants on a picnic table, waiting to be fed!! HhhuuummMMM!!! HHHuuuMMMMM!!!!"

In the pause after the third verse three counter voices coming from the kitchen began to sing at the same volume. Everyone quieted to hear what they were saying.

"And there you'll sit like birds in the wilderness, flies on a trash can, ALL THA THINGS THAT YOU SAID, and there you'll sit like turtles at the dinner table, waiting to be fed!" On the last part Mikey, Dance, and Daydream appeared at the entrance to the kitchen, Mikey holding the big salad bowl and the other two managing the toppings. They leaned against each other in a dramatic ending. "Waaaiiitttiiiinnngggg tooo beeee-eeeeee FFFEEEEEEEDDDDD!!!!" Mikey went up on a high note while Dance and Day tried to hit the lowest octaves they're feminine voices could manage.

The table erupted into laughter and cheering as the salad was served. The trio seated themselves and quickly delved into their salads.

Meanwhile Donnie cocked an eyebrow across the table at Raph.

"Uh-oh, salad? Since when do we get salad?"

"I don't like salad," Mily piped from beside Donny. She had grabbed her plate off the table as the salad was being passed around. The pink wearing turtle girl was trying desperately to hide it in her lap.

Donatello grinned and gently took it from her. He piled a mountain of the greens up on the plate to Mily's dismay. He chuckled when the twelve-year-old glared at him menacingly.

"It's good for you so I know you'll eat all of it," Donnie said, a certain grin on his face.

Mily returned it with a half-hearted smile and immediately asked Ziptango to pass the croutons and bacon bits.

Donnie then returned to his conversation with Raph. "Probably someone passed the trials," he offered while lavishly pouring oil on the Caesar salad.

"Yeah, but which one?" Raph asked gruffly. He quickly scanned the table.

Machias was a likely candidate but Hex and Arista were just as good. Splinter didn't really give a care to when she finished with the trials, as she was more interested in the history of the ninja than being one. The others were still a year away from even trying so it was definitely a toss-up between Hex, Machias, and Arista.

Don's smile was candid. "I don't really know, but my bet is on Hex." His eyes darted to the turtle girl who was stuffing herself with her favorite salad. "She's been looking wiped out this entire week and you know how the trials are. And the salad is a dead giveaway." He grinned and pushed an olive around on his plate.

Raph grunted and returned to his meal.

Pretty soon everyone was finished and demanding 'real food'.

"Please no more veggies!" Mily exclaimed with hopeful vigor as she crossed her fingers and closed her eyes as the main course was placed on the table. She let out a private cheer when the smell of lasagna tickled her senses. Snapping her eyes open, Mily was met by a strange looking lasagna dish. She flicked her eyes at Hex. "Hey, this isn't lasagna..." she began to complain but Mikey's interjection silenced her.

"Of course it is. It's just not regular lasagna," He smiled at Hex. "It's veggie lasagna."

Hex beamed back at brother in orange. He must have known or he wouldn't have gone through such pains to fix all her favorite dishes.

"Sensei, may I ask why we're having an all vegetarian meal?" Leonardo questioned. Secretly he already knew, but now was as good a time as any to tell the girls.

Lenni forcefully banged her fist on the table. "Yeah!" she exclaimed with energy coming from despising all these vegetables. When everyone's eyes flipped towards her she sunk a little in her seat. "I mean, um, well...not everyone likes veggies as much as Hex!" The youngest turtle gave an accusing glance towards her sister.

Hex grinned in defiance.

Master Splinter smiled at his daughter. He slowly rose from his chair, gaining silence from the green youngsters. "Do you wish for me to inform them or do you want the honor, Hexadecimal?" He asked his daughter. When she shook her head, he continued with the rapt attention of eighteen young turtles. "Your sister, Hexadecimal, has completed the final stage of the trials. She will now be granted access to Above whenever it is appropriate and can do so without an older ninja to accompany her. When she goes farther than the respected limit, Raphael shall be her advisor."

At this Raphael about choked on his soft drink. Punker and Mikey had to whack him hard on the shell a couple of times.

Master Splinter allowed a ghost of a smile to cross his face but nothing more. "She has received a high honor today, a honor that I have no doubt each of you will obtain in due time. I am very proud of her." He looked at each of his pupils in turn. "And that is why we are entertaining a dinner of her favorite foods, Leonardo, Lenore." Master Splinter sat back down.

All heads quickly jerked towards Hex who had begun to stuff her face with a large quantity of lasagna.

"What?" she mumbled through a mouth full of cheese. Laughter broke their silence and congratulations were sent Hex's way. She ignored them in favor of inhaling as much lasagna as she could.

Donnie looked across the table at Raph who was staring at Hex. "Told you," he said smugly.

Raph caught him square in the mouth with a handful of lasagna.

Tyger saw it and immediately screamed as loud as she could, "FOOD FIGHT!!"

The instant she said it, food exploded off plates to find new homes splattered against the wall. A huge glob of it hit Splinter in the mouth; she returned it with a rapid fire of bread sticks. Hex rescued what she could with her plate. Leo tried to restore order but after being pelted with more than his fair shared, he grabbed a pair of extra long breadsticks and began whapping his siblings upside the head with them. Ziptango grabbed the now empty pan and used it as a shield, ducking behind it whenever lasagna flew her way. During the middle of the battle, Daydream scampered off to the kitchen. Mily and Lenni joined with Ella and Tyger to make a group of terror. They whirled around the dinning room with expert skill; anyone in their line of fire was in absolute danger. Mikey finally broke them up by barging into the middle of them and grabbing Lenni and Ella. Mily and Tyger attacked him in revenge. Donnie was using a very reluctant Machias as a mutant shield between him and Raphael who had recruited Punker and Dance to help him. Arista was following Hex's example and eating anything clean that was thrown at her. The two girls grinned at each other across the table.

Master Splinter just sighed at his children's antics. There would be a time for solitude later, he supposed, and they would have to clean it up anyway. He sat there quietly, letting the food fight wind itself down.

Daydream came out of the kitchen to find the dinning room in complete disarray. She cleared her throat for attention.

"Ahem." She beamed as brightly as she could and held out her dessert.

When the noise didn't stop Day screamed as loudly as she could, "HEY!" The racket stopped instantly and so did the motion.

After seeing the veiled dish in her hands the family quickly took their seats.

The little preteen walked straight over to Hex. She set the bowl directly in front of her sister, obviously proud of the dish.

"Alright then." She glanced at the lasagna-assaulted room then looked at her family. The Italian dish had not been wasted on simple eating, definitely not. "This is something new I found on the Internet and it really looked good. Hope ya like it Hex!" Daydream snatched the veil off the bowl.

Hex's eyes about popped out of her head at the look of it.

"I think that's an unhealthy amount of chocolate, Day," Donnie stated with purpose. A grin slowly spread across his face. "And I want an extra large part of it."

Daydream put her hands on her hips. "Of course it's unhealthy, it's called 'Death by Chocolate' for a good reason!" The girl lovingly caressed the glass bowl that held her newest creation.

Leo leaned in for a better look. "What's in it?" he inquired. With good reason too. The clear bowl looked made up of layers and layers of brown all with different textures.

The turtle girl smiled brightly and tapped her chin in thought. "Let's see. Hmm, the bottom layer's crumbled brownie, the next layer's chocolate whipped cream. It was supposed to be regular whipped cream but it's supposed to be Death by Chocolate. How can it be death by chocolate if it isn't entirely chocolate?" Her logic caused a ripple of giggles. "Next layer is crumbled Heath Bar, then another layer of brownie, then chocolate whipped cream, a light sprinkling of Heath Bar for effect and then a chocolate covered strawberry on top!" She beamed at her creation. Strawberry instead of cherry because, of course, I don't like cherries."

"Hex gets first dibs!" Tyger announced.

"Of course," Leo said. He was the official disher-outer of desserts.

Daydream handed him her favorite wooden spoon to use.

Hex gave the strawberry to Mikey since he had been eyeing it from when Daydream had unveiled the chocolaty delight.

By the end of dessert everyone had agreed that this was one of their favorite desserts.

Day looked towards Master Splinter as he finished his portion.

"This was quite well-made, Daydream. I prefer it much over that chocolate pizza you keep insisting on making."

Day blushed. She couldn't help it that t was one of the easiest things to make.

After dinner was finished Master Splinter made everyone clean up the dinning room. When that was done, the turtle family sped off to any means of entertainment they could find.

Tyger bounced off towards the TV to watch whatever she could; the older turtles had the ability to liberate you from the TV at any time by using their powers of blackmail. Mily dragged Mikey off to play the Playstation2 with her. It wasn't long before they were both giving running commentaries of EVERYTHING their character did. Raphiella had basically thrown herself at the novel she was reading; having to eat dinner had taken her away from the savory morsel of fiction for way to long. Daydream went over to the shelf to grab the sewing kit; she had ripped her bandanna during practice and now seemed like a good time to fix it. Feeling a need for some alone time, Danceingfae trotted off towards the dojo to practice. There never seemed to be time for privacy in their household. Lenni and Raphael disappeared into Master Splinter's study to explain themselves for the grim they had tracked in. They stayed in there for some time.

Machias, Splinter, and Ziptango ran off to Donnie's lab to finish the experiment they had been working on before dinner. It had something to do with potatoes and electricity. The last time they had tried it the potato had exploded. Donny darted off after them to make sure they didn't destroy anything. It was getting harder and harder to work in there and he was about to ask Master Splinter for a new lab of his own. Leo, Arista, and Punker set about doing the dishes and cleaning the kitchen. Hex confiscated the remote from Tyger but they soon settled on a show they both enjoyed.

A couple hours later certain turtles began to go off to bed. Pretty soon the living room was vacant except for four turtles, three of the girls and Raphael. Splinter had come out of the lab in time to begin her favorite movie; now she was reluctant to leave it only halfway finished. Raph and Arista seemed to be battling each other at who could stay up the longest. Every once in while Raph would yawn and Arista would do all she could not to yawn also. She'd glare at Raphael, blinking her eyes in an effort not to let them droop. Raph's smile was quite smug when the thirteen-year-old leaned against him in drowsiness. Arista snapped to, refusing to fall asleep. Lenni seemed to be up just because it was her contrary nature to defy sleep.

During one of the commercials, Splinter looked down at Lenni from her spot on the couch. Lenni's head was resting against Raphael's knee, her blue and yellow bandanna tails draped across him; it was quite obvious that the turtle in red was trying to keep his position so as not to disturb her or Arista who had now fallen asleep on his shoulder. Splinter almost didn't want to ask but the question had been nagging her for the entire evening.

"Hey Lenni?" she mumbled at her littlest sister.

Lenni rolled her head towards Splinter. Her eyelids were drooping, sure sign that the girl was about to fall asleep. Her sugar high had worn off hours ago but she was still clinging to the last remains of it.

"What?" Her voice was full of complaint at being disturbed.

Splinter grinned. "Where'd you an' Raph go to get so dirty this afternoon?" she inquired.

Lenni shrugged sleepily. "Just for a walk. He tripped me and I fell so I pulled him down with me," she mumbled.

Raph swayed his leg, moving Lenni's headrest. Lenni moved with him. "I didn't trip ya, Runt, you fell," he corrected gruffly before returning his knee and Lenni's head back to there original position.

Lenni thudded her fist down on his foot. "Ya did to trip me. I know ya did," she accused softly before curling up on the floor in front of the couch.

Raph gently placed a foot on her shell to see if she was awake. When Lenni didn't move he smiled.

"Little know-it-all sleeps like a rock," he mumbled.

Arista moved against him. "Rocks don't sleep, half-wit." She said into his shoulder.

Raph snorted then carefully pushed her until she was lying against the armrest of the couch.

Raphael rose and picked up Lenni. Yawning quietly, he pulled Arista to her feet and gently prodded her in the direction of her room. She shuffled off that way her head resting against her plastron. After laying Lenni down in the room she still shared with Mily, the turtle in red silently went back for Splinter. The turtle girl was now asleep, her ragged rustic brown bandanna tails falling across her face along with her hair. He pushed the bandanna and light brown locks away from the girl's face.

Raph smiled, knowing that no one could see how much he loved his little sister. He carefully picked her up and carried her to her room.

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A.N.: Well...whatcha think? Plz R&R! I'll be sure to tell Daydream what y'all said! Promise. 


	2. Machias

A.N.: Yes, I'm back again. Amazing, ain't it? Lol. Daydream & I've decided to co-write this one, so this way if one of us gets stuck, the other can finish the chapter off. Wish us luck.

Disclaimer: Daydream own the story idea, though I probably own part of it somehow. Lol. And, as per usual, I own nothing but Daydream & Ziptango. Oh! And me! I always forget me. Hehe. Enjoy!

Ziptango, Daydream, Raphiella, TygeroftheWynd, Mily and Lenni are all twelve. Danceingfae, Machias, Splinter, HexAdecimal, TMNTPunker, Arista are all thirteen. The guys are eighteen.

Single rooms: Dance, Machias, Splinter, Hex, Punker, Arista

Doubled: Zip-Day, Mily-Lenni, Tyger-Ella

Buzzzz...buzzzzzz....BUZZZZ....BUZZZZ...BEEEEEEEEEEPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP-CRUNCH!! Beep...beep...brreeepp...burgle...SHALASH! MMmmmmrrr...

Machias gave her alarm clock an incredulous look. How could it still be making a sound after she smashed it with her history book and then, when it KEPT GOING, sliced it with a shuriken? It was defying logic! She'd already put it on sleep mode a couple times; it just wouldn't give up. Machias sighed. Well, it was time to get up anyway and if she didn't make it to practice by seven she'd get extra chores tomorrow. She shrugged out of her covers and groped around for her bandanna. The lights had been set by Donny to automatically come on at five-thirty in the morning, but Machias had reset her room to manual, which meant it was still dark. Outside the door she could already hear her siblings up and about. She grinned as her fingers touched the soft cloth of her bandanna. It was still the same bright red from her childhood but the multiple stars had been singled out until only three remained; one on the forehead and one on the ends of each bandanna tail. Tying it around her head, she jumped up and headed for the door.

Weaving in and out of other turtles, she quickly made her way to the bathroom. A few years ago it had been upgraded to giant size to get ready for so many teenage girls. Also, a second bathroom had been added just for the guys since the girls had complained constantly about privacy. Machias sighed. Having a big family always meant little privacy. At least she had her own room now even though she hadn't really minded being Splinter's roommate. It was just that your own room meant you were older and had more responsibility. Also, there was no more tape marking whose side of the room was whose.

Machias smiled as she grabbed her clear purple toothbrush from its holder and sidled in between Tyger and Danceingfae. Danceingfae was pulling a fine-toothed comb through her auburn hair while Tyger was valiantly trying to wake up by splashing water in her face. Machias slid her toothbrush into the running water right before Tyger decided to stick her entire head under the faucet. When she came up she was grinning through soaking brown locks.

"Tyger, what are you doing?" Dance asked, not removing her eyes from the mirror. She had felt the light sprinkling that flew off Tyger's hair as she whipped it out of the water. Tyger flipped the wet wave behind her shoulders and shrugged.

"Trying to drown myself, duh," she said in a sarcastic tone. Danceingfae ignored her.

Tyger was always like this in the morning; any ray of sunshine that had once hung around was squashed into an oblivious nothing.

Machias snorted after she spit her toothpaste into the sink. "Good luck." She encouraged.

Tyger glared at her sister then stalked out of the bathroom, her blue and white bandanna clenched in her fist. Dance laughed.

"Don't make her any madder, Match, you never know what she might do."

Machias scowled at the nickname. She'd gotten it when she was ten and experimenting with anything that came her way. How was she supposed to know that Spam could throw a flame that far? Her fingers still ached when she thought about it.

"It's Machias..." she muttered but Dance was arranging her golden yellow bandanna into its conformed braid and was lost in her own little world.

Machias rolled her eyes and left the bathroom. By then it was 6:15, just enough time to grab a cereal bar and rush to the dojo. When she reached the dining room, everyone was finished with breakfast, courtesy of Ziptango and Arista this morning. Now that they were older, the girls were no longer split up into two nice little groups. Since Michelangelo and Danceingfae covered dinner every night they didn't have to cook any of the other meals, which left everyone else with breakfast and lunch. Daydream, however, only cooked for a very little part of dinner so she was still on the meal list, just not as often as the others. Machias decided she hadn't missed anything since all Zip and Ris had done, was make a Pop-tart tower that was glued together with a ton of honey and syrup. It had been reduced to nothing but the foundations and that was about to be destroyed. Mikey had walked in the door right behind Machias. He rubbed his hands together at the sight of the pop-tarts.

"Morning everybody! How creative, Pop-tart Mountain!"

"No, actually it _was_ an exact replica of the Empire State Building, but..." Arista started.

"We have a family," Ziptango finished for her. Both girls grinned at each other from across the table.

Machias walked over and eyed the remains. "If there's a whole Pop-tart left in there I'd be amazed," she said, poking at the pile of crumbs and jelly filling. Mikey shrugged.

"Oh well. Crumbs are just the remains of something tasty. I'll eat those." He sat down and then beamed at his sisters. "I know one of you is just dying to go get me a spoon."

Zip chuckled. "Whatever, Mikey. You've got ten minutes before practice starts so I suggest you start shoveling." She leaned over and picked up one of his hands. "Use one of your happy, helpful body parts!" With a smirk on her face, she and Arista left the dinning room.

Machias followed their example before Mikey could employ her to his use but first stopped by the kitchen to snatch a cereal bar. She'd already inhaled it by the time she reached the dojo, darting inside with just enough time to grab her ninjato from its stand and get into line. Beside her, Splinter was twirling a bo staff. She smiled when she saw her sister.

"Morning Machias! Alarm clock stop working?" she asked.

Machias allowed herself a smug look. "Only with force."

Splinter looked confused and then laughed. She knew her sister had always harbored a serious hatred for alarm clocks but had never really showed it until she got her own room and her very own alarm clock to destroy at will.

"Oh man, is Donny gonna be mad with you! This is what, the third time this month? And it was such a nice alarm clock, Match."

Machias frowned. Even Splinter was lapsing into the old nickname...

"And I bet the next one will be even louder if Don has anything to do with it." Machias muttered as she gave an expert swing with her sword. "I'll fix my own clock, thank you."

On the other side of her, Hex had to duck to avoid the swooping blade. She glared at Machias.

"Hey, Match, be careful with that thing. You're gonna take an eye out or a head off for that matter," she snapped and pointed a gleaming sai at the sword. Machias clenched her free fist.

"How many times do I have to tell you that it's Machias! _Not_ Match." Machias bristled beneath her shell as Hex laughed at her.

"Ah come on, it's not that bad. Think of all the memories that go with it."

Machias gave her am 'you're-an-idiot' look.

"They're all bad; horrible even." Machias began to count off on her fingers, her eyes widening in anger. "The way I got it was me about burning my fingers off! I had to go around for three weeks with 'em all bandaged up and I couldn't pick nothing up. The second time was when I accidentally set the tablecloth on fire when trying to light a candle. Another time I almost burnt Mily's hair off while messing with an oil lamp when the power was off! She still grudges about that and the singe marks have been gone for ages!" Machias was almost at screaming level now. Everyone was staring at the normally quiet girl. "So _don't_ tell me 'it's not that bad.'! It _is_ that bad and I hate it!" Machias shouted.

Suddenly she was aware of the unnatural silence that had fallen over the turtle family. Her eyes shown with red fury as she yelled at them. "What are you staring at?! It's not like you've never seen anybody get mad before!" She tapped her foot angrily. "Heck, Raph blows his top every day and nobody stares at him like he's a freak of nature! So stop staring!"

"Wow..." Lenni said as she closed her gaping mouth. "That was...wow."

"Machias, calm down," Mikey said soothingly. He had come in about halfway through Machias' rant.

(Me)

"Calm down," Machias muttered. "Calm down! They all disrespect me, and _he_ tells _me_ to calm down!"

Before anyone had a chance to say anything else, Master Splinter entered the room then. He took his place at the head of the dojo and returned the bow his students were giving him out of respect. They all knew the consequences of not doing so – half having had learned the hard way.

"Good morning, my pupils," Master Splinter smiled. "I see that you are all prepared for a good workout this fine morning."

"Don't see what's so fine about it," Lenni, who was standing behind Machias, muttered softly to Mily, whom was standing next to her. "We gotta practice an' miss all the _good_ cartoons."

Machias gave a grim smile at that, knowing how their littlest sister felt about having to miss her favourite cartoons for practice. She shook her head slightly, as she realized their Sensei had begun to speak once more. She got into the ready stance and listened intently on what he was explaining.

Master Splinter stood at the front of the dojo, explaining the newest kata to his pupils. He was telling them what they needed to do in Japanese, knowing they'd all know what he meant, and would do the moves in the exact order he had asked of them. He counted aloud for them. "Ich, ni, son, chi, go, rook..."

Machias moved her ninjato skillfully, doing the moves as perfect to her ability as she could. She was angry, and when angry, she focused even harder on her katas than usual. She tuned out her surroundings, and was still doing the new kata, when everyone else had stopped to move onto something else.

"Hey, Match!" Lenni hissed. "You can stop now! Sensei's staring!"

Machias quickly moved without thinking, knocking her sister to the dojo floor. She stabbed her sword into the floor, next to the startled young turtle's head. "_It's Machias_!" She hissed, never having had been so angry before.

Lenni whimpered, as they both heard someone clear their throat loudly.

"Machias, Lenore, what is the meaning of this?" Master Splinter demanded sharply. "It is _not_ time to spar."

Everyone else was standing there, looking on in shock and disbelief. No one had suspected that quiet Machias had a temper, one that was starting to seem as though it matched Raphael's.

Machias glared down at her little sister. "Remember what I said," she told her coolly. "And pass it on."

Lenore nodded, gulping slightly, as Machias finally let her up.

Machias pried her sword out of the floor and got back into her position upon returning to her spot on the floor.

Master Splinter eyed Lenore warily as she stumbled to get back up again. "We shall talk later," he informed her, before returning to the front of the dojo.

Everyone quickly resumed their positions, as the youngest of them all stood staring with her mouth gaping open. She hadn't done a thing, but warn her sister and now _she_ was in trouble. She grunted and got back into position, not the least bit amused.

Machias smirked slightly to herself, and went on with the practice. Needless to say, she didn't jump any of her other siblings for the remainder of their training.

Once training had dispersed for that morning, the turtles all silently left the dojo to go about doing what needed to be done. Hex, Dance, Arista, Splinter, and Punker all headed for Donatello's lab to finish up the chemistry lesson they'd started the day before. This was while, Zip, Day, Mily, Ella, and Tyger all headed for the den to watch some television, before they had to begin their lessons. The girls had been split up into two groups for their lessons, as they were less distracted that way. Also, the older girls were ahead of the younger ones anyway, so it all seemingly worked out just fine. The only ones who didn't head for where they usually went were Machias and Lenore. Lenore had knowingly headed for Master Splinter's study, as Machias just headed off for her room, deciding to skip her lessons that day.

Machias entered her room and flopped down upon her bed. She could've cared less right then, about the consequences for skipping lessons. She was exhausted, from having had stayed up a bit later than usual, to finish up some homework. She was also too angry with her siblings to be around them for a moment longer.

There was a knock at her door then, and a moment later it opened, a green head sporting a blue bandana poking in.

"Care to explain what all that was about?" The turtle asked, entering the room un-welcomed.

"Get out!" Machias snapped.

"Not until you explain what happened back in the dojo," Leonardo said, closing her door behind him and crossing his arms over his plastron. "I want to know _why_ **_you're_** now acting like Raph."

"Oh, I am not," Machias grumbled, throwing her pillow at his head. "Now get out, before I call Sensei and tell him you're intruding."

"And he'll tell you to get to the lab for your studies," Leonardo answered, with a smug smile upon his face. "Either way, _you_ lose Match."

"Quit calling me Match!" Machias yelled. "It's _Machias_! _Not_ Match! Get it through your _thick_ skulls!"

"Ah," Leonardo nodded. "I see the light as to why you're so angry."

"Shaddup!"

Leonardo narrowed his eyes at her. "If you're not going to respect me, _how_ do you expect me to be able to respect you?"

Machias sighed. She _hated_ when the know-it-all leader was right.

"Look, us calling you Match isn't something to get yourself so worked up about. I'm sure we've all nicknames we'd wish everyone would've forgotten by now," Leonardo stated. "Besides, this is the first day in a _long_ while that anybody's called you ' Match'."

"Well, I _don't_ like it!"

"That's still no reason to go around attacking people," Leonardo replied. "Now, I'd advise you to get to the lab, before Master Splinter finds out you're trying to skip."

Machias grumbled angrily, but got up and headed for Donatello's lab anyway. She knew she basically didn't have a choice – not where Leo was concerned. She grouchily stomped into the lab, and stood leaning against the wall, away from everyone else.

"Nice of you to join us, Machias," Donatello smiled. "We were waiting on you, before we re-started our experiment."

Machias gave him a brisk nod, then stood silently, as she watched him explain what they needed to do, and what was to happen once they'd done everything correctly.

A.N.: Well, hope y'all enjoyed this. Machias, you're review is the one that's going to drive me insane waiting for. Heh. pEaCe! Lenni


	3. August 17th Switcharoo

A.N.: Hey y'all! Sorry it took Daydream & I so long! Well, here's the next chapter! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Only own myself, Ziptango, and Daydream. Daydream owns the story idea. TMNT & everyone else owns themselves!

Note: Ziptango, Daydream, Raphaella, TygeroftheWynd, Mily and Lenni are all twelve. Danceingfae, Machias, Splinter, HexAdecimal, TMNTPunker, Arista are all thirteen. The guys are eighteen.

TMNTPunker plunged her spoon back into the ice-cream carton for the last bit of vanilla and chocolate swirl with fudge chunks that was sticking stubbornly to the bottom. Most of the young turtle clan was, like Punker, carrying out their right-before-bedtime rituals. Punker's routine was devouring some particularly sweet item that probably wouldn't be there the next day. Usually it was just a Twinkie or a piece of cake but tonight it had been the remains of the double-flavored ice cream. After chucking the carton basketball style into the garbage, Punker carefully hid her dirty spoon on the inside of the sink. She didn't want anybody figuring out who'd eaten the rest of the ice cream. On second thought, Punker ran some hot water over it and wiped it off for good measure. Since vanilla and chocolate swirl was Donny's favorite flavor he'd probably run a DNA test on the spoon just so he could wreak his ultimate revenge on the culprit. After finishing her cleaning, the turtle girl was ready to head out of the kitchen when the calendar on the wall caught her eye. The big numbers 16 stood out at her. It was the 16th of August, which meant tomorrow, was the 17th, which meant… Punker stared, her dark brown eyes growing wide. She quickly ran over to the wall calendar and ripped off the current day. Sure enough, tomorrow was The Day. Bright marker streaks and ribbon streamers decorated the area around the big number in the center. A number that obviously had a very significant meaning since somebody had taken the time to glitterize it with rainbow sparkles. Punker stared then ran out of the kitchen and straight into the living room. She knocked Raphael's feet off the coffee table before she jumped on top of it with a shout that caught everyone's attention, especially Raphael and Mikey's since she was now standing in front of the game they were playing on the TV.

"THE SEVENTEENTH!" Her screech made Dancingfae jump in her armchair, her novel flying into the air. Machias, sitting Indian-style on the floor with one of Leo's comic books, casually stretched out a hand and caught it before it landed on the ground. She grinned as she handed it back up to her sister from whom she received a thankful smile in return.

"What'd'ya think youse doin', ragamuffin? Get off the table!" Raphael snapped at his sister but Punker was undeterred from her course. She turned her wide-eyed gaze on him and flapped her arms for emphasis.

"Today's the sixteenth of August which means tomorrow is the seventeenth!" Everyone gave her confused looks but that didn't stop Punker. She just continued her wild yelling. "The seventeenth! Of August!"

"Bah Senmeenth Swifeoo!" Lenni hollered through a mouth full of minty fresh toothpaste. She had been listening from the doorway of the girl's bathroom where she, Raphaella, and Ziptango were brushing their teeth. Ella raised an eye ridge.

"The Senmeenth Swiferoo? Hmm, can't say I've heard of that one," she said with a mock-serious look and rubbed her chin as if in thought. Lenni made a frustrated noise then spit her toothpaste out in the sink.

"I said, the Seventeenth Switcharoo!" she screamed in excitement and then added in a possessive tone, "I wanna be Mikey!" She ran into the living room, her eyes shining happily. The Seventeenth Swictharoo or August the Seventeenth was a designated holiday in the turtle household. Started by the one and only Michelangelo as a joke, it was the day that you could become any one person in the entire family as long as you were not yourself. You took on their personality traits, expressions, and worked with their weapons. It started the moment you woke up and ended when you went to bed that night. It all made for an interesting day.

"Over my dead body, Lenni! I wanna be Mikey, you were Mikey last year!" Mily's shouting grew louder as she entered the living area. She had been typing on the computer in Donny's lab when Punker gave her announcement. Lenni glared darkly at her. Over on the couch, Mikey gave a smug smile.

"See there, Raph? I'm the popular brother; not you, not Donny and definitely not Fearless Leader. Me. Everybody loves Mikey!" He ducked away as Raphael's hand whipped around to slap him in the back of the head. Machias grinned into her comic book.

"Let's rephrase that; everybody loves Mikey except our darling Raphael," she said. Mikey jumped up from the couch and shrugged.

"Aw, he's a lost cause any way."

"Ya ain't even gonna be a cause, Mikey, if you keep annoyin' me," Raphael snarled.

"Ouch, my feelings, they ache," quipped Mikey as he placed a hand over his heart.

"Mikey!" Raphael was after him in the next instant, practically flying over the couch to get at him. Mikey was already down the hallway though.

"You yelled?" He called back as Raph came after him, leaving the girls in the living room. Mily and Lenni looked like they were about to start a serious sparring match complete with teeth and nails as they locked gazes with heated glares. Danceingfae set her book down as got up from her chair.

"Cut it out, you two, you know nobody gets to choose who they are." A playful smirk flashed onto her face as Mily and Lenni quieted. "And if anybody is getting Mikey, it's gonna be me." That started the two younger girls right up again with both of them shouting at Dance. Punker had hopped off the table and ignored them. A fight between siblings was a common occurrence. Only a Raph vs. Leo death match was a cause for popcorn and betting anymore.

"I'm gonna go round up the others." She looked over at Machias. "Wanna help?" Machias nodded and tossed the comic book onto the coffee table.

"Anything's gotta be better than watchin' the three of them screechin' at each other," she said with a grin and raced Punker down the hallways to get the others.

After some explaining, quite a bit of yelling, and multiple misadventures of dragging people out of bed, the entire family was seated in the living room. Or at least they were in the living room. Most of them were sprawled out on the floor, half-asleep or actually asleep. On the coffee table was a rainbow pile of bandannas. This was the most popular way of deciding things such as teams and sparring partners in the lair. Everyone would take off their bandannas and pile them up. Then, with their eyes closed, they'd all reach in and pick up a bandanna. Master Splinter smiled at his bleary eyed pupils. He rarely ever participated in this event; it meant giving over his responsibilities to one of his children and that didn't sit very well with him. He smiled as the last two of the girls, Splinter and Tyger, trudged in.

"Can we start now?" Lenni and Mily asked simultaneously than glared at each other. How they would share a room tonight if either one of them got Mikey, nobody knew.

"Of course," Master Splinter said. "Leonardo, would you like to go first?" He looked over at his oldest who had his head lying over on his arm. Arista, who was sitting right beside him, flopped her arm over onto him as a wake-up hit. Leo was immediately alert and nodding at Splinter.

"Hai, whatever you say, Sensei," he mumbled in sleepy tones.

"He just said ya gotta be his personal slave for the rest of your life," Daydream quipped. She had her head leaning against Donny's shoulder that was acting as a pillow. On the other side of the usually purple-clad turtle, Ziptango gave a snort.

"Not that that's much different than your life so far…" Donny wiggled his shoulders to hush the two as Leo sent them death glares. The oldest turtle stood up and made his way ceremoniously over to the coffee table. He closed his eyes and slowly started to reach into the pile when…

"WAIT!" Tyger shrieked and jumped up from the floor where she had been sitting cross-legged. "He's already memorized the entire pile structure! He's LeoNARDO, remember?" The rest of the clan nodded.

"Yeah, Leo, ya gotta let somebody spin ya," Machias piped up softly. Leo sighed.

"Okay. Arista, spin me."

"NOT ARISTA!" They roared at him.

"Arista is like your mini-lackey!" Splinter snarled from the floor beside the armchair. She had been one of those who had to be drug into the living room; she still had her dark scarlet blanket wrapped around her. Arista just shrugged and buried her head into a couch pillow. Leo growled and took a short assessment of the rest his sisters but before he could pick one, Raph stood up, a devilish grin marking his face.

"I'll help ya, Fearless Leader."

"Like heck you will!" Leo looked imploringly at Master Splinter. "He can't spin me."

"Why not? I'm a good spinner," Raph boasted smugly.

"I see no problem here," Master Splinter said as he folded his fingers over one another. Leo gawked for a second and then steeled himself.

"Fine. Raph, spin me." Pretty soon Leo was twirling around like a top in the middle of the room. When Raphael let go, Leo whirled halfway across the rug before jerking to a halt. He swayed on his feet, and to the laughs of siblings, fell down on his knees. Leo, half-humiliated, crawled over in the direction of the coffee table and stuck a hand into the pile. He pulled up, the quick motion turning him a darker shade of green, and held up a black, frayed bandanna.

"Hexadecimal," Leo muttered as he opened his eyes and Hex snickered. That would be interesting. Master Splinter smiled and motioned for Leo to take his seat. One by one, the rest of the turtle clan walked up and drew out a bandanna. There was mixed emotions from certain people about which person they held chosen but there was overall tolerance. The biggest letdown was when neither Lenni nor Mily got Mikey. Even Dance didn't get her coveted first choice. Lenni gave a wail as she ended up tugging a bright blue bandanna out of the pile.

"UGH! Leo!" she shouted. Arista and Punker pouted as Lenni tried to get out of the pair-up.

"Aw, c'mon, I can't be Leo! I can't do anything Leo-ish!"

"You know the rules, Lenni, you keep who you get." Mikey said.

"What's wrong with getting me?" Leo asked with a hurt look. Lenni rolled her eyes.

"'Cause it's you?" Leo jumped up and chased her around the room.

Daydream cocked her head to the side when she drew out a purple and gold stripe of cloth. She caught Mikey's gaze and held up the strip of silk.

"Who's this?" she asked him. He walked over and took it from her. Holding it up to the light he pretended to give it the good old Sherlock once-over then returned it to her with a serious expression still on his face. He gave a shrug.

"No idea."

"That would be mine." Everyone turned and stared at their sensei. Master Splinter smiled at his children. "I also like to have fun once in a while." There was silence and then…

"WOOT! I GETTA BE MASTER SPLINNER!!!" Daydream began dancing around the lair with newfound energy. She ran up to hug Master Splinter then continued her sporadic yet joyous bouncing. Lenni held up the last remaining bandanna which happened to be Mikey's cheerful orange one.

"So I guess you're Mikey, Master Splinter?" She asked as she stood up and took it over to him. Master Splinter nodded.

"Yes, I believe I am…dudes." The clan roared with laughter at the master's attempt to sound Michelangelo-ish. Tomorrow was definitely going to be interesting!

Ziptango – Machias

Daydream – Master Splinter

Raphaella – Ziptango

Tyger – Splinter

Mily – Dance

Lenni – Leo

Dance – Punker

Machias – Donnie

Splinter – Lenni

HexAdecimal – Daydream

TMNTPunker – Raphaella

Arista – Raphael

Leo – HexAdecimal

Mikey – Arista

Donnie – Tyger

Raph – Mily

Master Splinter - Mikey

The next morning…

Lenni grumbled to herself as she crawled out of bed, remembering she was to now be Leonardo for the day. "Dammit! Why'd I hafta be _Leo_?

"Lenni, you're s'pose to be Leo, _not_ Raph," Mily mumbled sleepily. "Though, why Leo an' Dance share a room this mornin' is beyond me."

"Stuff it!" Lenni snapped, getting out of bed grouchily.

"Fine – Leo," Mily smirked, rolling over to go back to sleep.

Lenni continued to grumble as she made her way into the bathroom. She was even less amused to discover it was still very early. She thought of something then. "Hey! It's payback time! Everybody's gotta listen to Leo! Sweet!"

Leonardo, on the other hand, was finding it very difficult to sleep in later than he usually did. It was times like now he hated having to be someone else – it threw his schedule out of whack. "Well, today shouldn't be _too_ bad," he thought. "I am Hex, after all." Little did he know just what Lenni and Daydream had in store for him.

Lenni smirked as she began to rap on bedroom doors and flick light switches on. "Time to get up!" She called out. "We got practice!" She was trying not to laugh, as she was being greeted by pillows whipped at her head in almost every room.

"Oh, Arista!" Lenni smirked, entering Michaelangelo's room. "Time to get up! We've got practice."

Michaelangelo was about to protest, but then remembered that he was now Arista and not himself. He grumbled incoherently into his pillow and got out of his bed. "Comin' Leo!" He gave Lenni a warm smile once he was up and ready to go – he'd known she'd wait for him. Never mattered who they were on August 17th, Lenni _always_ waited on him to get out of bed. He kissed her head quickly, deciding now was the best time to sneak a kiss in.

Lenni smiled at him, but spoke. "Arista! Come help me wake these lazy turtles up!"

Michaelangelo grinned at that. He _loved_ to wake people up – especially Raphael. He eagerly ran into Arista's room. "Get up Raph! Leo says we have practice!"

Arista played her role perfectly – she grumbled into her pillow and flipped Michaelangelo the bird and _every_thing!

"I'm gonna tell Leo you did that!" Michaelangelo smirked.

"Stuff it Arista!" Arista shouted, whipping her pillow at her brother's head.

Michaelangelo ducked, then went on his way, waking others up as well. Soon, it was him, Lenni, and Danceingfae who were waking the others up. Danceingfae was getting to be TMNTPunker.

"C'mon!" Danceingfae called out. "Leo says we gotta get up! So, GET UP!!!"

Soon, all but Splinter, whom was playing Lenni, was up, out of bed, and headed for the dojo.

Lenni narrowed her eyes, and though this was weird for her, she yelled. "LENNI! GET OUT HERE! NOW!"

"NO!" Splinter yelled back from her room. "YOU _CAN'T_ MAKE ME LEO!"

"DO I HAFTA COME IN THERE!?!" Lenni yelled back. "I MEAN IT! GET OUT HERE!"

"MAKE ME!" Splinter hollered back.

Lenni narrowed her eyes even more and got a determined expression upon her face. She stalked down the hallway and into Splinter's room. "I SAID UP!"

"And I said NO!" Splinter replied, pulling the covers over her head, along with her pillow.

Lenni went over to her, yanked the covers and pillow off, then with strength she didn't even know she had, yanked Splinter off the bed. She dragged her sister along, the whole way to the dojo.

Everyone stifled their laughter, as they saw Lenni do to Splinter, what Leonardo usually always had to do to her these days.

"DOJO!" Lenni snapped.

The other quickly went in, and were surprised to find Daydream all ready in there.

"Good morning, my students," Daydream smiled, returning their bows once they were all where they needed to be. She tried hard not to giggle, when she spotted Master Splinter in Michaelangelo's spot in the dojo. "Today, we shall work on the praying mantas some more."

"Aww! Sensei!" Splinter groaned, like Lenni would've. "We already learned that! I'm NOT doin' it!"

"You shall do as the others, or shall have numerous ten flips instead," Daydream told her firmly. "Now, do set to work. I shall watch as you practice, and correct anything I deem to be anything but perfect."

Donatello groaned as did Raphael – they were playing Tyger and Mily. Those two girls hated the praying mantas more than anybody – Lenni didn't count, as she seemed to hate everything they did lately.

"Now, now," Daydream scolded. "Just do as you are told."

Lenni suppressed her own comments, as she focused hard on being Leonardo. Of all people, just _why_ did she have to grab the bandana of the one she did _not_ ever want to be? She would've made a much better Mikey or Raph – mostly Raph these days. She bowed to Daydream, and began working on the praying mantas.

"Hey, Sensei?" Master Splinter spoke then.

"Yes, my son?" Daydream asked, hiding a smirk.

"Why do they call it 'praying mantas'?" Master Splinter asked, trying his best to be his youngest son.

Daydream smiled. "Why do you think they call it that, my son?"

"'Cause it sounded better than squashing mantas!" Master Splinter finished with a smile.

Splinter snickered from her spot, only to receive a cold look from Lenni. Boy, her baby sister sure was taking the role of Leo seriously – a little _too_ serious, maybe.

Raphaella and HexAdecimal both giggled. As Ziptango and Daydream, they had every right to laugh at Master Splinter's joke. Besides, the only one whoever truly got in trouble for laughing was Lenni.

Daydream walked over to the two that had just snickered. "Find that funny, do you?" She asked calmly. "Well, keep it up and you shall both be walking on the same patch of thin ice Lenore is walking on this morning."

Both girls gulped slightly, silently deeming it not fair, and set back to work.

"Sensei?" Machias began. "How long are we practicing? I have some things that need fixing and important work on the computer." She'd been happy to get Donatello's bandana the night before. It meant she could touch his things in the lab and mess around with the computer for as long as she pleased.

"For about another hour or so," Daydream replied, happy she didn't have to actually do any of the lesson herself. Though, she was making sure not to bother Master Splinter too much – she just hoped he didn't take offense to it or anything – she was just busying focusing on her other siblings, who kept trying to goof off.

Soon enough, the morning practice was over and everyone was free to do as they pleased – luckily, every August 17th, school lessons were cancelled, as Master Splinter believed it would be fruitless for any of the girls to try and teach the classes Donatello taught to them.

Ziptango immediately staked claim on the television. "Hey Splinter! C'mere an' watch the telly with me!"

Tyger quickly went and sat next to the one who was Machias for the day. "Aye," she replied with a smile. "What we watchin'?"

"Whatever looks good," Ziptango answered. "And good luck to anyone who even dares to _think_ of trying to steal the remote!"

Tyger laughed, and watched as Ziptango flipped through the channels, in an attempt to find something good on at seven in the morning.

Meanwhile, Lenni had cornered Leonardo is the dojo before he had had the chance to escape. "Hex!" She called, blocking his path quickly. "We need to talk. Seems you need a bit more work on your praying mantas."

"But – I – Sensei said practice was over," Leonardo replied, doing the best he could to sound like HexAdecimal – though, he was finding it hard.

Daydream nodded to Lenni. "Go right ahead and help your _sister_ out," she said with a smile. "You need me, I shall be meditating in my study."

Lenni nodded, and then turned to stare up at Leonardo. Wasn't her fault she was still the smallest turtle in the family – though Daydream wasn't all that much taller than her. "Now, I shall show you how to do it properly."

Leonardo watched as Lenni began showing him the praying mantas. As he watched, he couldn't help but think that Lenni was the one who needed help on it, not him.

"Are you watching or daydreaming?" Lenni asked, interrupting his thoughts.

"Sorry, Leo," he apologized. "I'll watch now."

Lenni grumbled to herself quietly, and started over again. Once done, she turned to him. "Your turn," she smiled, trying to sound encouraging – though, inside she was boiling over with suppressed anger.

Leonardo sensed her smile to be fake, and wondered what was up with her. Normally, she could do very good impressions of him, but today – today she seemed more like Raphael than ever.

Lenni waited until Leonardo had begun the praying mantas, then began to speak in a low snarled voice. "What's wrong, _Leo_? Don't like getting' a taste of your own damned medicine? Huh? Well, just you wait. 'Cause I'm _you_ all damned day, an' I'm gonna make sure you get in shit every damned time yah turn 'round!"

Leonardo eyed her, keeping his stance. He'd decided to let her vent, rather than interrupting and upsetting the young turtle further.

"An' yah know what? I'm glad Daydream's playin' Master Splinter – means I got somebody on my side to teach yah a damned lesson! An' I hope yah think of it every damned time yah go to get me up BEFORE six for a damned practice I DON'T even wanna be apart of!" Lenni went on, her eyes glazing with fury. "An' you're damned lucky I'm NOT as big as you, or I'd kick your ass Leo! I'd kick your freakin' ass SO damned good you'd be hurtin' for months! And I mean that!"

"Well, _Leo_," Leonardo started calmly. "If you keep talking to me like that and _Mikey_ hears yah, _you'll_ be the one with a sore – as you like to call it – ass; _not_ me."

Lenni growled and shoved him, causing him to fall over and land upon his shell. "Practice is now over!" She said sweetly. "Maybe you'll do better next time, _Hex_." She then quickly left the room.

Leonardo sighed inwardly, knowing he'd eventually have to talk to Master Splinter about her attitude and stuff lately. He brushed himself off, then went off in search of everyone else.

"What's up – Dude?" Master Splinter asked Donatello.

Donatello smiled. Being Tyger was fun, as he could relax and didn't have to fix anything. "Nothin' – Dude. You?"

"Not a thing, man," Master Splinter answered. "You wanna go sewer skatin'?"

Donatello raised an eye ridge. "Ah – Mikey – you sure that's a good idea? I mean, Sensei might not want us leaving the lair today. And Leo – well – Leo seems a bit peeved – and it's not a female thing."

"Ah. I dig," Master Splinter nodded. He too had noticed Lenni's behaviour, but had no idea as to just how bad it was. "But sewer skatin' woulda been fun!"

"Well, ask Lenni then. She loves it more than anybody," Donatello suggested. "I'm actually lookin' for Donnie – gonna go see if he's in the lab." Truth be told, he was scared stiff about having Machias is his lab alone and able to do anything she wanted. "See yah!"

"Later – Dude!" Master Splinter nodded, then went to find Splinter. He was starting to think his pupils didn't want to 'hang' with him, as technically, he was still their Sensei.

Splinter happily accepted the offer though. "Sure Mikey!" She grinned, now glad she was Lenni. "I'd love to go sewer skatin' with yah!"

Master Splinter smiled warmly at her, and the two left to go sewer skatin'. Of course, seeing Master Splinter leave the dojo with Mikey's skateboard had been cause enough for everybody else to quickly follow the two. They were _not_ going to miss this for the world!

"Tyger! Out!" Machias yelled at Donatello. "I'm not doing a thing in here! Now, leave me to play Spider Solitaire!"

"You promise not to touch anything?" Donatello checked. "I mean, c'mon Donnie! Mikey an' Lenni just set off to go sewer skatin'."

Machias raised an eye ridge. "Seriously? Mast – er – Mikey's gone to sewer skate?"

"Yep!" Donatello replied, nodding his head. "An' I think everybody else – but Sensei an' Leo – followed 'em outta here!"

Machias looked at Donatello. "Okay, for once _you're_ gonna do somethin' fun!" She declared. "Today, Donatello is leaving his lab – for _much_ more important and pressing matters!"

Donatello laughed. "I'm down with that!"

Meanwhile, Lenni and Daydream were in Master Splinter's study, exploring – though, it was basically just taking advantage of Daydream's position for the day.

"You sure Sensei won't mind?" Daydream questioned for the zillionth time.

"_Sensei_, **_you_** can do whatever you want," Lenni reminded her. "You can also yell at _HexAdecimal_ for _any_ and _every_ little thing!"

"Leo, are you _sure_ this is full proof? I mean, I know you want to get back at HexAdecimal and all – but still…"

Lenni narrowed her eyes at Daydream – who was one of her best friends. "Look. Either do it, or I'll blab who broke Master Splinter's antique Japanese portrait with a football!"

"Hey! You helped!" Daydream argued.

"And who will _Mikey_ believe – _you_ or _Leo_?"

"But – But! _I'm_ Sensei!" Daydream protested. "You're bein' mean Lenni!"

"I'm Leo, remember?" Lenni snapped. "Get with the program, _Sensei_!"

Daydream frowned. "If it were normal to see Leo do ten flips, I would order you to do some right now!"

Lenni rolled her eyes. "Well, Sensei – I believe Hex deserves some instead. _She_ left a mess in the kitchen and bathroom."

Daydream sighed. "Fine."

Out in the sewers, everyone but two, watched Master Splinter attempt to sewer skate. He was making his pupils nervous, as he wasn't as young as he used to be and had _never_ been on a skateboard before in his life!

"Watch you don't fall, Mikey," Raphael called out. Since he was Mily, he had every right to worry that _Mikey_ would fall and get hurt.

"No worries, Dudes!" Master Splinter answered, finally getting the skateboard to go. He rolled along, not doing so bad, all things considered. "COWABUNGA DUDES!"

Everyone laughed and groaned at once. "Mikey!"

TMNTPunker, whom was being Raphaella for the day, leaned over to whisper to Raphaella, who was Ziptango today. "Boy, Sensei's sure doin' a good job of bein' Mikey, ain't he?"

Raphaella nodded. "Yep. He'd rad!"

TMNTPunker snickered, imitating Raphaella's snicker.

Raphaella elbowed her sister in the side. "Be nice," she smiled. "'Cause tomorrow everything is normal, an' I know where you sleep."

TMNTPunker feigned fear, causing the two of them to giggle. Once their giggles had subsided some, they resumed watching Master Splinter sewer skate.

Eventually, they all returned to the lair, only to be confronted by an angry looking _Sensei_.

"HexAdecimal!" Daydream said firmly. "Come with me!"

"But – what – huh?" Leonardo said, looking and sounding utterly confused – which he actually was.

"I have been informed that you made a mess in the kitchen _and_ bathroom," Daydream answered. "You are to clean it up – both rooms. Then, you shall do two hundred ten flips. And finally, you shall meet me in my study for a discussion we _must_ have."

Leonardo frowned having a feeling he knew just whom was behind all this. He grumbled and set off to do as told, though he was _not_ at all amused.

Everyone else – including Master Splinter – stood there shocked. Though, mind you, Master Splinter wasn't as shocked as everyone else.

Daydream smiled at everyone. "Go about your activities, my students." She then quickly retreated to Master Splinter's study. She'd noticed his gaze, and was trying to very quickly get away from it.

For the rest of the day, things went on pretty much as well as they had that morning. Though, by the end of the day, everyone was even more fed up with Lenni than usual – she'd made Leo seem even jerkier than ever before. And though Leonardo could sometimes be a jerk, he was not as bad as the youngest of the clan had made him out to be. They were sick of listening to Splinter too – as she was doing _too_ good a job as Lenni, whining over _every_thing and _any_thing. By the time they all crawled into bed that night, everyone was ready to be themselves again the next day – despite how much fun they had had being a fellow sibling instead.

A.N.: Well, whatcha think? Was it funny enough? And I hope I didn't forget anybody! If I did, I'm terribly sorry! Lenni


	4. Reiko

Disclaimer: Lenni and Daydream do not own the ninja turtles or anybody besides themselves! (dance to techno) Badadadadadadadadadadada-badadadadadaadaaaadadadadaaaa. (laughs)

Thirteen-year-olds: Dancingfae, Machias, Splinter, Hexadecimal, Punker, Arista; Twelve-year-olds: Ziptango, Daydream, Mily, Lenni, Tyger, Raphiella

Arista was sitting at the card table in the living room, a game of solitaire set out in front of her. She had been playing Speed with Hexadecimal earlier and before that she had gone through a couple rounds of Egyptian Rat Screw with Michelangelo, Splinter, and Tyger. They had all been dragged off to do other things, leaving Arista alone at the table.

A bit bored of the solo card game, she decided that it was time to go for an expedition up topside. She swept all the cards together and put them back in their little cardboard box. Dinner was not for a few hours still and it was already dark outside, making it a perfect time to go Above. All she had to do was a weapon and tell one of her older brothers were she was off to. She had not attempted the Trials yet so she was still restrained to the one block radius.

Slipping away from the noisy living room, Arista made her way down the hall which was rather empty at the moment. Everyone was busy playing on the Playstation or reading or talking with each other. She could hear Ziptango beating the drumset that she had in her and Daydream's shared room down the hall but that was the only noise from any of the other rooms. It was easy for Arista to go to her own room without being noticed. For a bit of decoration, she had put a light blue carpet on the floor. It felt soft on her bare feet as she crossed it, heading towards her weapons rack. She had trained with a variety of weaponry but she had not yet chosen which weapon would be the one she mastered in. For this outing, she selected a lightweight sword and attached the sheath to her back. Master Splinter did not allow any of them to go out unarmed; it was much too dangerous with the Foot and the regular NYC gangs running around. She also slipped a pouch of shuriken and a pair of climbing claws onto to belt just in case she needed them.

Leaving her room, Arista made her way towards the entrance of the lair, a determined look on her face. She was in the mindset for a solo outing. As she walked by, she saw Machias standing outside of Zip and Day's room, pounding on the door.

"I swear, Ziptango, if you don't stop all that banging right now, I'll shove your sticks into the blender!" she shouted, pounding on the door. "And I won't be sorry, either! I can't even concentrate on my novel."

"Then your concentration isn't very good," replied Ziptango in a contemplative tone as she paused in her playing. "Besides, how are you going to puree my sticks if you can't even unlock the door?"

"You have to eat sometime!" snarled Machias, scowling at the door. "And that means you have to unlock the door." She saw Arista out of the corner of her eye and whirled on her. "Make her stop it," she demanded, flicking her narrowed gaze at the door.

Arista smiled and shook her head. "I can't. She's an unstoppable force of nature when it comes to the drums."

"You are SO no help," complained Machias, putting her hands on her hips. She slammed her fist on the door again, making it shake. "Don't make me get my ninjato!"

"Go ahead. Master Splinter will just make you fix the door and find me new drums," Ziptango said. "Yay, new drums!" A loud cymbal crash announced that she had started playing again. Machias let a noise of screeching frustration and stormed off to her room, slamming the door behind her. Arista rolled her eyes at her sisters' behavior and continued on her way.

She met up with Donatello as he was stepping out of the dojo, his bo staff in hand. Behind him was Mily, who looked worn out, her pink bandanna drenched with sweat. She leaned against the doorway and fanned herself with her tessen fan as Arista stepped up to Donnie.

"Hey Ris, what's up?" he asked, rather out of breath. His observant gaze immediately noticed the sword on her back and the pouch and claws on her belt. "Going out?"

"Only if it's okay with you, brother dearest," she said with a warm smile, obviously sucking up to him. Donnie made a wry face and looked down at the watch/communicator on his wrist. She had some time and he did not think Master Splinter would mind.

"Fine, but you better be back in a couple hours," he said. He raised his bo staff and put it on his shoulders, draping his arms over it like a milkmaid.

"Thanks, Donnie, you're the greatst," Arista said, giving him a polite bow and a grin. As she started to walk away, Donnie had an afterthought.

"Arista, take one of the communicators with you," he said, nodding his head towards his lab. "There should be an extra-"

"I know," interrupted Arista. She winked at him and gave Mily a commiserating look. "Sometimes I think he forgets I'm his sister."

"I wish he'd forget that I'm his sister," Mily wheezed, glaring up at her purple-clad brother. She brandished the fan at him. "I mean, geez, Don, you'd think this was going to be my last work out ever…" She rubbed at her sore muscles while Donnie rubbed his chin thoughtfully, not entirely convinced.

"Well, judging on the life expectancy of a lazy female turtle-" he started to drawl on in his lecturing tone. Mily let out an enraged squeal and started to beat him with the blunt end of her fan, smacking it repeatedly against his arm. As he warded off her attack, he grinned smugly. "See, I knew you weren't completely drained…"

"No comment," Arista said, holding up her hands, and left Donnie to save himself. She let herself into the lab that doubled as their medical area. The drawer with the spare communicators was near the door, under a table covered with spare papers and other scientific mess that belonged to Donnie. Pulling out one of the smaller sized communicators, she strapped it onto her wrist, tightening it until it fit perfectly. This was much better than the clunky things Donnie used to make when he was younger.

Arista had no problems getting out of the lair without being spotted by any of her other siblings. They were all absorbed in a variety of different things and, besides, Arista was a ninja-in-training. That had to count for something. Out in the sewer, her feet splashing through no one wanted to know what, Arista felt excited. Sure, it smelt bad, but soon she was going to smell fresh, NYC air up Above. On nights like this, she liked to look at the sky and try to find stars in the light-polluted sky. She wondered what it all looked like, away from the city. Maybe they could go vacation in the country some time.

It took some effort to force the manhole cover away but Arista accomplished it without too much noise. She was cautious; she was using one of the alleyways where nearly no one came. Scrambling off the ladder and onto the concrete, she quickly took in her surroundings. Like she had guessed, no one was there besides herself. It must have rained earlier that day; there were nice-sized puddles dotting the alleyway. Catching the lights from the street, oil swirled around in them, creating metallic rainbows. She crept farther into the shadows, enjoying the rare thrill of being up top.

After scurrying up the fire escape of the abandoned apartment building, Arista crouched down on the roof, her hands resting on the crumbling brick wall that rimmed the edge. The windows of the city block glimmered at her almost tauntingly, teasing her with how warm and open they were to the world. The people that lived in them did not have to hide in fear of being discovered; no, they could go to school and work without being plagued by curious or, worse, horrified stares. Arista did not regret her family, but she did regret what they were, even though Sensei said that they had a purpose. What could possibly be the purpose of sixteen mutant turtles and a mutant rat? Why were there so many of them, anyways? She sighed and thumped a piece of broken mortar down into the street. It was pointless to complain anyways. She stood up and pulled her climbing claws onto her three-fingered hands. Better safe than sorry. She started sprinting towards the edge of the rooftop. At the last moment possible, Arista bent down and leapt for the other rooftop, shoving off from the apartment with her powerful leg muscles. She landed silently on the balls of her feet, barely disturbing the gravel.

A few hours later, Arista was back in the alleyway, her patrol complete. She had been around the perimeter of the block and nothing exciting was happening. Nothing ever happened when she went out but Dancingfae had already stopped two muggings and Hexadecimal had knocked some purse-thief unconscious. Not that Arista was looking for trouble; she just wanted a chance to prove herself. She would have to take the Trials soon, anyways.

Arista froze when she heard a couple of the trash cans knock into each other. She narrowed her eyes, gazing cautiously out from the shadows. There wasn't anything visible… She waited, her shell pressed against the wall behind her. The noise was getting closer. She could hear trash scraping across the concrete but she could not tell where it was coming from. Her hand moved up the side of her sword sheath as she took in a huge, calming breath. Slowly, she pulled the blade from its sheath and held it in front of her.

Stepping out into the alley, she brought the sword lower towards her hip. From here, she could just slash straight across.

Suddenly something jumped on her back, knocking her to her knees. She was grateful that she had her kneepads on. Startled, Arista rolled to the side and swept herself up onto her feet, her sword arm putting the blade in front of her instinctively. She found herself face to face with a furry, possibly tan-colored mound. It quickly morphed into a panting, pink-tongued, tail-wagging mutt that stared up at Arista with golden brown eyes.

"Well, aren't you the cutest…" Arista said, putting her sword back into its sheath. She did not reach out to touch the dog; she had seen to many Animal Planet specials on rabies to do that. It waited patiently, its tail swiping back and forth across the dirty concrete. Arista grinned. She had always wanted a dog just like that but living in the sewers made pets inconvenient. The younger girls had always whined about getting a hamster or something but Master Splinter had never approved the idea. Arista just thought he did not want something that looked so similar to himself as a pet.

The dog trotted over to Arista and sat down in front of her, his tongue lolling out of his mouth as he blinked up at her. He smelt rather nasty and his fur was dirty but besides that he was perfect! Smiling, Arista reached out her hand and patted him on his fuzzy muzzle. His tongue poked out and licked her hand, leaving behind a trail of slime. She beamed; she this was what a dog was really like.

"Where's your collar, buddy?" she asked, patting him around the neck to see if it was hidden in his fur. The dog sat there patiently, just watching Arista with warm eyes. She couldn't find one so she decided that he was a stray. Glancing around the alley, she wondered what she should do. She couldn't just let him roam the streets. She wasn't exactly sure what the humans did in the case of strays but she did know that they may put him to sleep if no one claimed him. It wasn't too hard to make up her mind…

Dancingfae had just started dinner when she heard the door to the lair near the kitchen open. She was making chicken teriyaki with rice, vegetables, noodles and fortune cookies that Daydream was supposed to be making. Putting the fork she was using down, Dance walked over and leaned out the doorway, wiping her hands on a dish cloth she had put in her belt. She saw Arista standing near the door, looking around nervously. Arista spotted her and smiled brightly, giving her a congenial, I'm-totally-innocent wave.

"Heya, Fae," she said in a casual tone, "What're you doing?" She 'accidentally' knocked one of the boys' trench coats off the wall and it landed on something on the floor, creating a bump. Dance was automatically suspicious.

"What I usually do at this time of day. Making dinner," replied Dancingfae, walking towards her sister. She returned the sweet expression and parroted Arista's question, "What're _you_ doing?"

"Me?" Arista replied, "Oh, I was just up top on patrol. Donnie let me go." She stretched her arms as if she was exhausted. "Did a little bit of roof-jumping while I was up there, so I'm just going to go wash up and take a nap."

"Tired you out, huh?" Dance nodded towards the trench coat lump on the floor. "Rista, what is that?"

"A trench coat," Arista replied, folding her arms across her plastron. Dance gave her a dry look and she sighed, catching Dance's eyes with a serious stare. "It's nothing important, Fae. I'll tell you later, I swear."

Dancingfae nodded slowly, glancing towards the bundle again. "Fine, but whatever it is, do give it a bath, would you?" She grinned at Arista and gave her a sisterly wink. "It really reeks."

"Hai, whatever you want," exclaimed Arista and scooped up the trench coat/dog. She beamed at Dance as the dog stuck its nose out from under the coat. "Love ya, Fae!" She took off down the hall, clinging to the bundle. Dancingfae put the heel of her hand to her forehead and sighed. Her sisters… She turned towards the living room and let out a shout. "Day! Cookies, remember!"

"Just a minuteeeeee!" Daydream's sickly sweet whining voice replied.

"We're playing Tekken, and I'm beating her so chill out!" yelled Lenni. Blowing at her hair in frustration, Dance retreated back into the kitchen, grumbling at the rice.

Arista dashed down the hallway to the bathroom closest to her room. It would be easier to get Reiko (that was what she had decided to name her dog) into her room after she had cleaned him if she was already close to her room. She slipped into the bathroom and pulled the trench coat off of the dog. He barked happily at the sight of her and she shushed him, tapping him gently on the nose. He quieted down but his tail thumped against the toilet as he wagged it. Arista started to run the water into the tub while Reiko investigated the bathroom.

"Don't do that!" she scolded as he took a drink from the toilet. He must have been really hungry and thirsty. Well, she'd tell everyone that she wasn't feeling well and have dinner in her room so she could feed him. Hopefully he would like vegetable tempura and teriyaki chicken.

A while later, everyone was seated for dinner except Arista. She had been excused to go and eat in her room, after claiming to not feel very well. She was feeding Reiko, when there was a knock at her door.

"Who is it?" She asked, quickly ushering Reiko under the bed.

"Me!" A voice called out. "I brought dessert!"

Arista opened the door a crack, only to have it shoved wide open by a turtle with a blue and yellow bandana. "Whatcha doin' in here all alone?"

"Eating," Arista replied.

"Uh-huh," Lenni answered. "Then why is yah food on the floor, huh? Yah eatin' down there while meditating or somethin'? Don't tell me yah gone all Leo on us."

Arista rolled her eyes at her littlest sister. "Lenni, I was reading something."

"But why not on yah bed? It's much more comfortable!" Lenni stated, jumping onto the bed with the different plate of different flavoured brownies in her hand.

Arista sighed. "I like the floor, alright?"

"Then how come there's a tail stickin' out from under the bed?" Lenni smirked. "Yah hidin' a puppy, aren't yah?"

"You ask too many questions!" Arista said, taking the plate from her sister. "Now, git! Sensei's gonna come lookin' if yah don't go eat your dinner!"

"Yer just mad 'cause I forgot to bring yah more juice to drink!" Lenni giggled. "An' 'cause I know yah got a puppy under there!"

"And how would you know?" Arista asked.

"'Cause he just ran out the door – haha!" Lenni laughed.

"Reiko!" Arista called frantically, running out the door after the dog who hadn't really left.

Lenni laughed, as the dog suddenly bolted out from under the bed and ran after Arista, who'd run off to find him.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!" Master Splinter's voice could be heard loud and clear.

Lenore went running back out to take her seat at the table, still giggling helplessly.

"I'm sorry, Sensei!" Arista apologized, as the dog chased Master Splinter's tail as it swished back and forward.

Half the turtle clan looked mortified, while the other half sat giggling behind their hands or smirking behind their drinking glasses.

"Arista, how long has this animal been here?" Master Splinter demanded.

"An hour, Sensei," Arista admitted sheepishly, scooping Reiko up into her arms. "I found him while on patrol. I couldn't just leave him there! They woulda put him down or something! And I've always wanted a dog! Mikey got Klunk!"

"Hey, hey now," Michaelangelo piped up. "Don't go bringing Klunk and I into this."

Master Splinter sighed. "Keep him from eating my tail, and we shall see. He has a week probation, before I decide what my final answer shall be."

"Thank-you, Sensei!" Arista beamed, kissing his furry cheek and running off to take Reiko back to her room.

"Now, we shall eat without further interruption," Master Splinter said. "Then I shall announce who is taking the trials next."

Everybody's eyes went wide and they all began to eat quickly, all wanting to know who got to go next. They knew it wouldn't be the younger six, but there were still some of the older ones who needed to take them. The only one to eat slowly, was Lenore. And is possible, she ate slower than a snail, thus stalling the announcement further.


	5. Whose Next?

Disclaimer: We, the esteemed joint-company of Daydream and Lenni, happen to not own the TMNT or their affiliated parts. Please take pity on us and do not turn us into the authorities. Thank you. they go running off screaming in the other direction

* * *

Raphael rolled his eyes. He always thought Master Splinter was melodramatic about this sort of thing and it bothered him. Why not just say it and get it over with until making them wait until the end of dinner? It didn't make any sense to him. And Lenni was taking her good sweet time… Narrowing his eyes, Raphael reached under the table and jabbed the blunt end of his fork at her shell. Lenni jumped in her chair and returned the glare with an indignant air.

"Don't do that!" she demanded, frowning fiercely. She rubbed at the spot he had poked on her shell.

"Do what, shrimp?" Raphael said then motioned to her plate. "Don't take so much time, I'll be a grandpa by the time you finish."

"Like anyone would date you long enough for children," Daydream said slyly, her eyes sliding over towards her brother, waiting for a reaction.

"At least I can get a date," Raphael retorted, a smoldering look on his face.

"I'm only twelve! I don't even wanna date," Daydream tossed back, enjoying the banter. "And who's gonna want to go out with a grumpy ol' sourpuss like you?"

"Better than dating the annoying green munchkin from Hell," Raphael replied, getting a more than a little riled up.

"Language, Raphael," warned Master Splinter. Raphael nodded but rolled his eyes when he thought Master Splinter wasn't looking. He was eighteen; who cared about a few cuss words every now and then?

Raphael and Daydream fussed back and forth while Lenni chased her teriyaki around her plate with her fork. Everyone started staring at her as the clock kept ticking away.

"Lenni, stop it," Leonardo finally said, leaning over and taking his youngest sister's plate away. "I'm just going to dump the rest of it since you're not hungry."

"Give that back, Leo! I'm not finished!" cried Lenni as Leonardo walked towards Klunk's food dish. While Lenni sounded off pleas and rants, Leo pushed the remaining food into the cat's bowl.

"You weren't making much progress, anyways," Dancingfae said, smirking a bit as Leo came back to the table. The cat came up and started munching on Lenni's chicken, obviously enjoying it much more than Lenni had.

With the last of the food gone, the older three girls who had yet to take the Trials, Arista, Machias, and Splinter, immediately focused on Master Splinter. Machias nervously chewed at her fingernails, excited but afraid at the same time. She hoped she was up to the challenge. Splinter pretended not to care and studied her napkin. Arista watched Master Splinter with rapt attention; if he thought she was responsible enough to take care of a dog, maybe he thought she was ready for the Trials. The younger six had varying feelings about the Trials. Lenni despised it the most; she never wanted to be a ninja anyways. She had to do it though because it was the family business. Tyger believed that she was already prepared to take the trials and Ziptango was starting to get the same idea.

"I have made my decision," Master Splinter said, scanning his children's eyes. He was certain the daughter he had chosen would rise to the Trials but he was not sure if her brothers would agree with his choice. "But I believe we should gather in the dojo to hear it."

There was a collective groan but they all scrambled out of their chairs, bumping into each other in their haste.

"Get your shell out of my face, Raphael!" yelled Hexadecimal as she was nearly clobbered by the older turtle.

"It's your ugly mug that's in the way, Hex," said Raphael, turning towards her and shoving her head.

"I'm the ugly one?" she asked with a snort, "Now there's a laugh."

"Good, you agree," Raphael replied, smirking. Hexadecimal glared up at him before she punched him in the arm.

"Don't hit me, Hex, I don't play games," Raph said, scowling down at her. She was not much shorter than him any more but she was still lacking a few inches. She returned the expression.

"Neither do I."

"I'm glad it's not me," Michelangelo said to Donnie as they walked towards the dojo. Machias was walking in between the two of them. Mikey made a face. "Hex hits hard."

"When she can get a hit in," put in Machias. "Sometimes she just hits without aiming or thinking and it's really easy to duck."

Donnie smiled at her and ruffled her bandanna tails. "I'm glad somebody else notices these things."

"Yeah, noticing things is supposed to be a good ninja trait, y'know," said Mikey. He put his arms behind his head and winked conspiringly at Machias. "Course, I don't really think that much of that particular one…"

"We know, Mikey," the other two said. Machias hugged her orange-wearing brother around the waist.

"But that's why we love you," she said. He hugged her back.

"Awww, you suck-up," Mikey teased, "And, no, you still can't have my new X-men comic." Machias jumped out of the hug.

"But Mikey!"

"I'm not even finished reading it," he said, "Maybe when I'm done."

"Maybe!"

Mikey grinned at her before glimpsing Lenni out of the corner of his eye. She was trudging along behind the rest of them. He nudged Machias. "If you go make Lenni walk faster, I swear you can borrow it right after I'm finished."

"Swear?" Machias asked as Donatello looked back to see what Mikey was talking about. He rolled his eyes as he saw Lenni dragging her feet along.

"Double ultimate swear," he replied and she was almost immediately beside her younger sister. He grinned at Donnie. "See, I have mad Jedi mind powers over them."

"You know, maybe you do," Don said mysteriously, rubbing his chin. Mikey raised an eye ridge.

"You mean that? Or are you using your own Jedi powers on me to make me think that I do?" Mikey was a bit confused now.

"You'll never know." He paused and folded his fingers together in front of him. "Or maybe you will. It is up to you."

"DON-NIEEEE!"

Up ahead, Arista and Ziptango were talking to each other while Daydream bounced around nearby, getting in front of them then running back.

"You'll do fine," Ziptango said, patting Arista on the shoulder. "Hex survived and you're just as good as she is. You even practice more."

"I know, but I don't know if I'm ready yet," Arista replied, her head bowed forwards.

"You're ready!" Daydream exclaimed, leaping in between them. "You are so ready, Ris!" She beamed with certainty at her sister then cartwheeled forwards, nearly bowling into Leonardo. Leonardo grabbed her ankles, stopping her from crashing into him.

"Hey Daydream," he said, keeping her in the handstand position. She grinned up at him, her face going red as all the blood rushed into it.

"Heya Leo!" she replied, enthusiasm uncrushed. Since he was in a good mood, Leo let go of her ankles, allowing her to stand back up without any rebuke. He had a soft spot for the younger ones. She skipped back to Arista and Ziptango and he followed her.

"Leo, do you know anything about who Master Splinter is going to pick?" Ziptango asked Leonardo. She knew that Arista would never ask herself. Leonardo shook his head and the three of them sighed.

"What're you good for?" Daydream asked teasingly.

"Bossing you around," he replied, tugging her badanna to the side so she couldn't see. She let out a startled squawk but kept moving. She stuck her tongue out in the direction she thought he was which happened to be a foot to the left from his actual position.

"Nyah-ha, Leo, I'm a ninja, I don't need to see," she said and crossed her arms as she walked, going much slower than before.

"I'm going to go make sure she crashes," Ziptango said wickedly and followed Daydream quietly. Leonardo rolled his eyes and put a hand on Arista shoulder, stopping her in the hall as others passed by.

"Even if you aren't picked yet, you're an amazing ninja, Arista," he said seriously and gave her a reassuring smile. "You're a great sister, too." Arista blushed with pleasure and returned his smile, grateful for praise from her favorite brother.

"Thanks, Leo," she said. "I appreciate it." She quickly hugged him and then nodded her head as they broke apart. "I'll be okay, whatever happens."

"I'm certain you will," Leo said and the two of them continued on into the dojo. The second they got in the door, there was a loud bump followed by a shocked, "OW!"

A maniacally giggling Ziptango followed Daydream as she stumbled into the dojo blindly, holding her head with her bandanna still covering her eyes. Raphael, leaning against the wall, reached over as she passed him and jerked it back right so she could see again. Disoriented, she ended up on the floor on her butt, blinking rapidly.

"Lemme guess, the wall attacked you?" Raphael asked as she looked up at him. Ziptango shook her head and tried to talk through her laughter.

"No, she just walked right into it," she said, answering for Daydream. Daydream glared up at her.

"Hey, you said I was going the wrong way!"

"Well, you were," Zip replied simply as she walked over to her place on the mat and sat down.

"But I thought you said you were going to make me crash so I just kept going…" She stared at Ziptango as she flopped into her place on the mat. "Dude, you better stop using Donnie's mind tricks! I hate it when you do that."

Donatello grinned at Ziptango and nodded his head to her. "Good going."

"You taught me well, Master Donatello," she said in a mock Obi-wan Kenobi tone. Star Wars was a mutual favorite movie series of her and Donatello.

After everyone else had filed in, Lenni was forcefully shoved through the doorway by Machias.

"Get in there, you slug!" shouted Machias as Lenni tried to walk back out again. "What'd you do, eat lead?"

"Don't call me a slug! Stop it!" yelled Lenni, shaking her head quickly, fury nearly flying off of her.

"Don't make me tackle you," Machias warned, narrowing her eyes.

"I'd like to see you try."

"Lenore, Machias, stop fighting and take your seats," said Master Splinter in a commanding tone. The two late girls plopped down on opposite sides of the dojo from each other. Master Splinter looked at his students and studied their expressions. Some were annoyed, some were full of anticipation, and some looked like they were going to fall asleep while others watched him as carefully as they watched him.

"The choice I have made has been pondered on and I know that I have chosen correctly," he started. "The pupils that take the Trials must be worthy, they must be strong, and they must be prepared. My decision is that Machias be the next to take the Trials."

"YES!" cried Machias, leaping into the air with one fist thrusting upwards. "Yes, yes, yes!" She danced around and Splinter leapt up to join her. The two of them victory danced around the lair before Machias turned around and bowed to Sensei.

"I am honored," she said, the grin on her face telling everyone she was than honored. She was ecstatic.

"You shall take them next week…along with Arista," amended Master Splinter now that it was quieter. Arista, who had been looking hard at the ground so no one would see her disappointment, looked up and blinked.

"Huh?" she asked, staring at Sensei. Tyger hit her in the shoulder as if to wake her up.

"You're gonna do the Trials!" she told her older sister. The others stared at Arista in disbelief. No one had ever taken the Trials at the same time; it just wasn't done. Michelangelo gave her a thumbs up and a big grin.

"You two earned it," he exclaimed.

Arista still sat in shock, unable to believe it. Was she really going to be taking the Trials next week? There was just no way! Was there?

"C'n we go _now_?" Lenore asked suddenly. "We know whose gonna do 'em, so why are we all still in here, huh?"

Master Splinter shook his head at his youngest. He didn't know what her problem was these days, but at times, she was worse than Raphael.

Arista finally looked up at Master Splinter, her eyes still wide in shock. "Thank-you, Sensei," she whispered softly, still not sure if she could believe this. It had to be a dream. It just _had_ to be!

Master Splinter smiled softly, nodding his approval at her. He knew she'd be shocked – as they all probably were. Never before had he chosen two girls to take the Trials at the same time. But he'd reasons for it this time – reasons he didn't care to disclose.

"Congrats!" Raphiella told her sisters who had been chosen. "You're lucky! I can't wait 'till I get to take 'em! Then I'ma get to be with Raph!"

Raphael muttered incoherently, shaking his head, his arms crossed over his plastron. He wasn't amused when he had to take them out and look after them. Sure, he loved them and all, but he didn't always have the patience to keep an eye on them while on duty.

"Hey, cheer up Raph," Michaelangelo said, nudging his brother in red. "Donnie's probably gonna get Machias, and obviously Leo's gonna get Arista if they pass."

"_If_ we pass? _If_?" Machias exclaimed. "Michaelangelo! We're good 'nough to do it an' you know it! You just said we deserve it!"

Michaelangelo chuckled. "Though, Machias seems to have your temper Raph."

Machias glared at him. "You _so_ owe me that comic book!"

"When I'm done," Michaelangelo nodded. "Which'll be – in a month."

"Argh!" Machias growled, as her brother in orange smirked.

Everybody laughed, as they watched and listened to the two of them – though, Raphael only smirked slightly. He wasn't going to let on just how amused he really was – no way dude! And Lenore – Lenore didn't laugh at all, or even smile for that matter. Her scowl just deepened even more.

"Are we done _yet_?" She exclaimed. "I've got things to do!"

"Like what, Runt? Watch cartoons all day?" Raphael countered.

Lenore glared. "Shut-up, Raphael!"

"Make me," Raphael replied, knowing how to get a rise out of the little one.

Lenore growled and prepared to pounce, only to have Mily grabbed hold on her before she'd the chance to move.

"He's not worth it!" Mily hissed. "Sensei's watchin'!"

Lenore shrugged her sister off, then stalked out of the dojo – not bothering to bow at all like she was supposed too.

"Ten bucks to whoever brings her back in here!" Michaelangelo chirped.

Leonardo frowned at his sister's lack of respect, not impressed one bit.

Donatello laughed, as Machias and a few others ran out after Lenore, to bring her back in hopes of earning ten dollars.

"And where yah gonna get ten bucks, Mikey?" Raphael asked knowingly.

Michaelangelo shrugged. "I never said it was real money."

The ones still in the dojo laughed, as they realized he was going to give out Monopoly money. They laughed even more as they heard shouting coming from the den.

Master Splinter sighed, knowing at this rate, he'd never have control of his pupils. Not if his youngest son kept promising them money.

"I believe, it is time to practice," Master Splinter stated, as Lenore was dragged back in kicking and screaming – literally.

Raphael moved over to the girls and swiftly lifted the one throwing the tantrum at age twelve up into the air, holding her out in front of him a foot or two off the ground. He'd picked her up by her arms, pushing them into her sides, so all she could do was squirm, kick, and scream.

"Y'all practice," he said. "I'll get her under control."

Everyone else nodded, as the girls who'd captured their sister ran over to Michaelangelo. "Money!" They ordered.

"Later," Michaelangelo promised, smiling. "Sensei says we hafta practice now."

The girls all nodded, and very quickly got into position. They knew the routine by now, and knew they'd get to express their feelings on the Trials announcement soon enough.

"Glad I didn't get picked," Splinter thought to herself. "I really don't wanna hafta do 'em. I'm happy with what I already got."

"Can't wait! Can't wait!" Raphiella thought, as she side-glanced over at Raphael. "He'll be _all_ mine then! All mine!"

Ziptango and Mily were whispering back and forth quickly, about what was going on – the Trials, they're annoying little sister, everything. Though, they weren't to be whispering at the moment, but nobody has scolded them for it yet, so why not?

Machias and Arista both stood tall and proud, both beaming about the fact they'd been chosen to take the Trials the following week. They couldn't wait!

HexAdecimal, Danceingfae, and TMNTPunker all stood ready and waiting for their lessons to begin, as they were technically ahead of everyone else, having had already taken the Trials and passed with flying colours.

TygeroftheWynd stood near Michaelangelo, as he was supposed to be helping her out with a kata today. He'd promised and Master Splinter had agreed to it, knowing his youngest son loved to help his little sisters in anyway he could.

Daydream stood in her position, staring off into space. She was dreaming about the day she'd get to take the Trials herself. Though, she still had quite a while to go yet. She was the second youngest, after all.

Donatello stood nearby, leaning against the one wall of the dojo, to supervise. When the girls practiced, he was there to ensure anybody who got injured would be taken care of promptly.

Leonardo was next to Master Splinter, as he helped give the lessons, seeing as he excelled in just about everything he did. Mostly because all he ever did was practice, practice, practice!

Master Splinter began the lesson, ignoring the screaming _child_ that his red-masked son was still holding, and trying to get control of. He knew the others could tune her out as well, and would probably do so if they hadn't already.

Raphael still held Lenore, as she kicked, screamed, and squirmed like crazy, no where near ready to stop throwing her tantrum just yet. She'd a lot of energy and anger pent up, and she'd be damned if she didn't let it all out!


	6. Confrontation

Disclaimer: Lenni and Daydream don't own the Ninja Turtles or our good buddies who are starting to appear again! hugs Ella who gave a real surprise review Lenni is under the belief that she owns Ziptango and Daydream so we'll let her keep thinking that. (thumbs up)

Thirteen-year-olds: Danceingfae, Machias, Splinter, Hexadecimal, Punker, Arista; Twelve-year-olds: Ziptango, Daydream, Mily, Lenni, Tyger, Raphiella

* * *

After practice, Arista brought Rieko out of her room and into the living room so everyone could fuss over the new, completely unexpected pet. Ziptango was especially ecstatic since she was a dog person and she kept petting him. Raphael automatically decided that dogs were definitely better than cats. Klunk had shed on his pillow who knew how many times and Raph had grown a grudge against the feline. Rieko, in his first few hours at the lair, had not shed at all, which made him indefinitely better than the cat.

Raphiella laughed as Rieko bounded over from Arista and licked her on the chin.

"Where'd you find her, Ris?" Ella asked, scratching the dog behind its floppy ears. Arista smiled as the dog looked back at her and gave a canine grin.

"Out in the alley over near Laird," Arista said, rubbing her hand over the dog as he walked by her. "And it's a boy, not a girl."

"Woo-hoo!" shouted Mikey, clapping its hands together excitedly. "Another guy to even out the odds some more."

"Hmm, twelve versus seven, I think we've still got you beat," Raphiella said and patted her brother on the arm.

"Yeah, Mikey, the popular ratio still belongs to the girls!" Machias announced and pumped a fist into the air victoriously. The other girls gave similar shouts of agreement, making Mikey give a defeated sigh.

"The life of a turtle dude around here is harsh," he said with fake heartache in his voice and he covered his chest with one hand.

"Mr. Melodramatic over here," teased Splinter, rolling her eyes at her goofy brother. Mikey laughed.

"Somebody's gotta have the job," he replied, putting his chin in the air proudly. Donatello smirked and nudged Ziptango.

"And who else is better qualified for it?" Don said, chuckling a bit.

"Ziptango, don't agree with him!" cried Mikey but his lilac-wearing sister was already nodding her head.

"Sorry, Mikey, but you're just too perfect at it," she said, smiling at him. Mikey lowered his head.

"Harsh, I tell you, it's harsh," Mikey lamented, taking on a pitiful air.

"Michelangelo Hamato, pity party of one," Hexadecimal called out wryly as if saying a dinner reservation. Mikey reached over to where she was sitting on the floor next to Arista and touched the spot on her side where he knew she was still ticklish.

"Gah!" Hex moaned as she doubled up in laughter. She batted his hand away with a snarl. "Mikey, stop! That's **not** cool! Stop that!"

"Attack!" Tyger shouted and joined Mikey in tickling Hex. "You shall be defeated!" Hexadecimal looked like she was going to murder the two of them. She started jerking around wildly, trying to free herself, but Mikey grabbed a hold of her to keep her still while Tyger continued to torture her.

"It's amazing that he isn't afraid of us," Donatello said as the dog romped around Hex, Tyger, and Mikey.

"Sorta weird, ain't it?" Ella said, cocking her head to the side. Arista frowned.

"He isn't weird," she said stubbornly. "He's a great dog."

"What are you going to name him, Arista?" Leonardo asked over the din of his siblings antics. The tan dog trotted over to him and butted its head against his hand. A small smile on his face, Leo gently rubbed its head.

"Never thought I'd see that," said Raphael, sitting down on the smaller couch.

"See what?" Mily asked as she jumped up next to him on the couch.

"Something that actually wants to be friends with Leo," he replied and Mily started giggling behind her hand. Leo tossed them an annoyed look and Raphael just shook his head. "See? No one wants to be friends with that."

"He is a bit grumpy now and again, but he's okay," said Mily, shrugging her shoulders. "Most of the time."

"I already named him," Arista said, ignoring Raphael and Mily's comments towards Leonardo. She blushed a bit. She had not thought that her brothers and sisters might want to help out in naming him too. "His name's Reiko, if that's okay."

"You could've asked us first, y'know," snapped Lenni. She was curled up on the bigger couch by herself and watching the others with a bitter look. She really wanted to go pet the dog too, but she was not through with her bad mood.

Punker frowned at her little sister. "It's basically Arista's dog, Lenni, she can name it what she wants," she said, defending her other sister. She stood up and put her hands on her hips. "Whatever's wrong with you lately, you need to get over it. It's pissing everyone off."

"Punker," Leo said, a warning towards her language. Punker shook her head furiously.

"No, Leo, she needs to know the truth." She turned back towards Lenni, anger flickering in her dark brown eyes. "Look, you little drama queen, we're all tired of this I'm-the-youngest-I-can-do-what-I-want attitude of yours! I'm sick of it, Sensei's sick of it, the guys are sick of it, and everyone's so annoyed with you!"

"Who cares what you think?" Lenni snarled, leaping off the couch and boring back into Punker's eyes with her own glare. "You can just shut up, Punker!"

"Don't tell her to shut up!" snapped Hexadecimal defensively. "Stop expecting everyone to treat you differently. We know you don't want to take the Trials but that doesn't mean you have to pull everyone down with you. Stop being a doushbag!"

"No one asked you, Hex! You're being a nasty prune, anyways," Lenni growled. "Your head's been as big as a hot air balloon ever since you passed those stupid Trials!"

"You take that back," Hexadecimal said with a quiet danger. Raphael caught her eye and shook his head and she backed down, fury smoldering in her clenched fists.

"All of you, calm down," Leonardo said, putting a hand up. He was not going to stop them, for he was thinking along the same lines as his sisters. He had been planning to talk to her later, in private, but it seemed that the girls had beaten him to it.

"They're right, Lenni," Splinter said in a softer tone as she gracefully stood up from the floor. "Your behavior is irrational. The rest of us have grown up; you still act like you're five. I'm starting to think that there's something wrong with you."

Lenni's eyes started tearing up. This was like a full frontal assault from her older sisters and no one was coming to rescue her. She glanced at Mikey who was watching at the older girls, wondering what had gotten into them.

"Is that what you all think about me?" Lenni asked, wiping briskly at her eyes with one hand. She looked at Mily, who was peeping out from behind Raphael, and Ziptango who was looking down at her fingers. "That I'm crazy or something?"

"We don't think you're crazy, kiddo," Donnie said carefully, holding up his hands. "It's just-"

"You act like you're an only child around here," Leonardo continued, matching Lenni's gaze. "You throw your fits and expect all of us to pay attention to you. It's hard on this family to cope with your actions."

"Then maybe I shouldn't be a part of this family!" screamed Lenni at him, stomping her foot down on the floor. "None of you want me here! You guys don't even love me and, you know what, I hate you back!" She fled from the room, swiping her hand across her eyes.

Daydream came out of the kitchen where she and Danceingfae had been cleaning up after dinner just as Lenni was running by.

"Heya, Lenni!" she said cheerfully, a big smile on her face, "I found Klunk!" She held up the cat who she had felt was being neglected because Arista's dog had shown up.

"Get out of my way!" shouted Lenni, bumping her shoulder into Daydream, making her sister bounce back against the wall. Klunk jumped from Day's arms, yowling and scratching the young turtle's hands as he made his startled escape. Daydream stared after her sister in shock while Danceingfae, having seen the whole thing, automatically came to her side, expecting a wave of tears. Lenni kept running, slamming the door behind her as she went out into the sewers.

"Daydream, are you alright?" Dance asked, stepping in front of her sister and taking her hands in her own. Daydream shook her head and pulled away quickly. She swept Klunk up again, buried her face in his fur, and dashed off to her own room.

Back in the living room, the turtle clan was having a mixed bag of reactions to the recent familial upset.

"I don't think that was the correct way to handle the situation," Arista said, lowering her eyes. Reiko, sensing her sadness, walked over and flopped his butt down on her leg before he laid down next to her. She rubbed her hand deep into his fur. Leonardo gave a hard sigh.

"She needed a wake up call," he said firmly. "She can't continue talking to people like that and expect to get off lightly."

"She don't always get off 'lightly', Leo," said Raphael, shaking his head as he stood up from the couch. "Master Splinter rides her too hard, sometimes."

"He wouldn't have to if she didn't act like such a little jerk all the time!" said Punker, flinging her arms into the air. "She never listens, we have to bribe her to do things, she as disobedient as sin-"

"And, what, you're the perfect child?" asked Raphael, his gaze hard. She looked away and he nodded. "That's what I thought. I'm gonna go talk to her."

Danceingfae walked in right as he was about to enter the hallway. They both sidestepped in an effort not to run into each other. She looked upset as he caught a glimpse of her face. "Raph, Lenni just went running out into the sewer and she shoved Daydream into the wall," she said in a big rush.

"What?" Raphael demanded in disbelief, "She actually left? Where'd she go, Dance?"

"Is Day okay?" Hexadecimal asked, hopping to her feet. Hex had a soft spot for the little sister that knew the best way to drive her up the wall. Danceingfae shrugged, not really knowing the answer to either question.

"She just left, right out the door," Dance told him quickly. He made a frustrated noise before following Lenni's path out the front door. Dance turned towards Hex. "Day was holding Klunk in her arms and I think he got a pretty good scratch at her."

"That burns it," Hex snapped as she stormed out of the living room and towards the bedrooms. They heard her pounding on Daydream's door all the way out in the living room. "You let me in right now, Daydream!" The pounding stopped abruptly along with Hex's shouting, signaling that Daydream had let her in.

"Now what?" asked Raphiella, looking at her remaining siblings. Donatello looked at Mikey and Leo.

"I'm going to go check on Day. She'll need those scratches cleaned out if Klunk cut her bad," he said, already knowing his little sister was not going to like that. Mikey nodded.

"I'm gonna catch up with Raph and look for Lenni," he said, giving Leo a sad look. "I don't think that was really fair to her." Mikey gave Donnie a bit of a smile. "Tell Day I'll come see her right when I get back, okay?"

Donnie nodded. "Yeah, I'll tell her."

Mikey started out of the lair, grabbing his trench coat and fedora just in case Lenni had done something especially dumb and gone above. He felt someone tug at his belt and found Mily standing beside him, a couple tears wetting her pink bandanna.

"Um, Mikey, can I go with you?" she asked in a cracking voice. "I don't want Lenni to be alone out there." Mikey smiled at her and rubbed his hand over his head.

"Sounds good to me," he said gently, "I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

"Us too, Mike," Machias said as she walked up, still tying her ninjato onto her belt. Tyger, Ella, and Ziptango were behind her, all of them securing their weapons. Mikey nodded.

"Just stay close, alright?" He gave them all a warm smile. "I care only take care of one lost sister at a time, okay?"

They all agreed and followed him out of the lair, leaving Leonardo to answer to Master Splinter when the head of the family came out of his room fifteen minutes later and found that most of his children missing. Only a few were moping around the living room, trying to become involved in usual after dinner activities but failing horribly.

"Where is everyone?" Master Splinter asked, looking from his oldest son, Leonardo, to his oldest daughter, Danceingfae. The two of them stared each other down, battling with their eyes until finally Leo gave up and sighed.

"They are out in the sewers…" he said slowly.

"Looking for frogs!" interrupted Punker a little too loudly. She jumped up from the game of checkers that she and Splinter had been trying to play. They both felt rather bad about how they had treated Lenni but neither of them really felt guilty. They knew they had said what needed to be said but Punker did not what Lenni to get into more trouble. "They decided to go look for frogs."

Master Splinter nodded his head ponderously. "Frogs."

"Yeah, um, Ella and Zip really wanted to go," Splinter put in as she moved a red checker across the board. "You know how they are when they get an idea into their heads."

"So everyone has gone 'frog-hunting'?" Master Splinter asked. This time is was Danceingfae who supplied an answer.

"No, Sensei, Day, Donnie, Hex, and Arista are back in their bedrooms. Klunk scratched Daydream but Donnie's getting her fixed up," said Dance.

"I will check on her soon, then," Master Splinter said, looking back towards the bedrooms. "Goodnight, my children," he said and bowed to them. They all stood up and bowed back. When he had left, they all sunk back down in their chairs and gave each other relieved looks.

"I hope they get back soon with Lenni," Dance whispered to Leo before she went back to reading her novel. Leo glanced at the doorway.

"Me too. Me too."

In Ziptango and Daydream's room, Donatello was trying to coax his sister into letting him see her hands. Hexadecimal and Arista were sitting on Ziptango's bed, watching Day squirm away from him. Klunk was lying in her lap but he was watching Reiko, who was sitting at Arista's side, through slits of green eyes. The dog returned his intent stare with a more curious one.

"Donnie, it's gonna hurt," Daydream complained, making her hands into fists and shoving them into her sunshine blanket. Donatello rolled his eyes and carefully pulled the blanket back.

"It will not and you know it," he said in a no-silly-business tone. As she pulled away and huddled against the wall, he gave a hard sigh.

"Daydream, let Donnie do what he needs to!" Hexadecimal said sternly. She crossed her arms over her plastron. "If you don't stop being hard to get along with, I'll sit on your shell and let Zip fart on your head when she gets back."

"That's disgusting," Donatello said, glancing towards the ceiling.

Daydream stuck her tongue out at Hex but her eyes were wide with displeasure. "Arista will save me," she said and gave her older, blue-wearing sister a puppy dog look. "Won't ya, Ris?"

Arista smiled at Daydream. "Only if you let Donatello look at your hands."

"That's a Catch 22," complained Day and Donatello laughed.

"You haven't even read that book yet," he said, shaking his head, and she smiled a bit.

"No, but I've heard you use the phrase before and I think I know what it means." She hesitated for a moment and started to open her clenched fingers.

"And what would that be?" Donnie asked as he gently took her hands in his. His sister's fingers had been nicely gouged by their cat but the scratches were not too awful deep.

"When both possibilities cancel each other out with the outcome in either case not being very good," she said, making a point to watch his face and not what he was doing. "I think its right, but I might be wrong."

"You're using it in the right context, at least," he said as he brushed a wet washcloth over her skin. She bit the inside of her cheek, making a point not to whine. Daydream looked over at Arista and Hex. "Guys, what's wrong with Lenni?" she asked. The two older girls shared a brief glance at each other, Arista's passive while Hex's was riled up.

"She got told straight to her face that we think she's being insane," Hexadecimal said, putting her shell against the wall.

"She's not insane, Hex," Donatello said. "I think she doesn't understand why she needs to become a ninja and pass the Trials." He started wiping Daydream's hands down with an antibacterial wipe which stung quite a bit. She hissed and yanked her right hand away from him, hot tears springing to her eyes. "Oh, sorry, Daydream," he soothed. He blew cool air on her cuts while he finished wiping them down. Hexidecimal rolled her eyes.

"You tell me that next time she throws a fit," she muttered. Arista patted her sister on the knee.

"I think Don's right," she said, nodding towards her brother. "Lenni thinks that we all just want her to be a ninja because the rest of us are."

"I'm not a ninja either!" exclaimed Daydream and she stared at her siblings desperately. "Is that bad?" Hex snorted while Arista grinned. Donnie laughed and ruffled her bandanna tails.

"No, Day, that's not bad," he said as he wrapped thin bandages around her hands, "You don't have to take the Trials yet." He finished tying the bandages and rubbed his thumb against her newly-wrapped hand. "But you do need to be a ninja for the sake of this family's safety."

"Huh?" Day asked, still confused.

"If you're not a properly trained ninja, you can't keep hidden or be really silent like you need to be," Arista explained. She patted Reiko on the head as he hopped up on the bed between her and Hex. "That's why we're afraid for Lenni. She doesn't get the point of ninjitsu or something."

"Then shouldn't somebody explain to her?" Daydream asked, turning to look at Donatello expectantly. He nodded and slid off her bed.

"I'm certain she'll hear a lot of it when she gets back," he said. "Are you three going back to the living room?"

"Yeah, I wanna be there when she gets home," Daydream said, bouncing off the bed to follow him. She scooped up Klunk again and grinned at Donatello. "Can we watch the Princess Bride?" she asked hopefully.

"Aw, we watch that all the time," complained Hex, tightening her bandanna as she and Arista got off of Ziptango's bed. Arista smiled.

"I like it too," she said, "I'd like to watch it, too."

"Yay!" Daydream exclaimed and let Klunk run off, Reiko right behind him. She linked arms with Hex and Arista and pulled them towards the living room, her buoyant nature returning. "C'mon, Donnie!" The purple-wearing turtle followed his siblings into the living room, wondering if Raphael, Michelangelo, and their small search party had found Lenni yet.

Lenore had run as far as she could as fast as she could. She had to get away from them. She just _had_ too! _How_ could they say all those awful things to her? _How_? She wasn't crazy – she _wasn't_! She reached the end of the tunnel she was in then, and looked around. She could go another way, or go up top which was forbidden for her until further notice – and especially without protection or one of her brothers. She decided to do something stupid – why not? It wasn't like anybody cared anymore, anyway.

She wiped her eyes with her hand as she climbed. "This'll show 'em," she thought bitterly.

Meanwhile, Michaelangelo and his posse had caught up with Raphael, all of them now off in search of Lenore together.

"Where the Hell did the Runt go?" Raphael growled after they had walked for quite a while. "She's not _that_ fast!"

"Yah never know, Raph," Michaelangelo sighed. "She can be fast when she wants to be. She only lets us see her slow side, in hopes of not having to practice."

"Maybe we shoulda just let Leo talk to her," Mily said softly. "Then maybe she wouldn't have left at all."

"Mily, it's Lenni we're talking about," Machias replied, rolling her eyes. "You tell her she can't watch her show and she runs. She always runs."

"But why?" Raphiella asked. "It's not like we gang up on her all the time."

"Sensei's got her on a short leash," Raphael stated, not sounding too happy. "So when she can't do something like watch her show, she feels like she's losing control of everything."

Michaelangelo nodded his agreement. "She's always quiet or moody lately 'cause she doesn't want to do the Trials – yes, we all know that – but she fears them. Not just because she doesn't want to be a ninja, but because she's also afraid she'll fail them miserably – she's not as good a ninja as the rest of us, even when she does actually try. She's still small for her age too, so that also gets her feeling down. She tries to hog the attention, because she wants to be noticed. She never gets noticed for trying hard in practice, all she gets is scorn and lectures. The rest of you are praised for your efforts, with the occasional lecture. Sensei's harder on her because she needs to improve, because she is small and not as strong. He's worried she'll end up hurt – or worse – if she doesn't start taking her ninjitsu seriously. There's probably more to it, than all that, but she refuses to talk about it."

"She's probably just still jealous she can't hog, Mikey," TygeroftheWynd muttered. "She always gets real cranky when she don't get her way with him."

Raphael snorted. "That's probably a factor too."

They reached the end of the tunnel then and looked around.

"You don't think she went up top, do you?" Ziptango asked worriedly. "She knows she's not allowed up there."

"Zip, this is Lenni here, remember?" Raphael retorted. "She's not s'pose to leave the lair, an' she does all the time. She's pissed with us, so why not go up top? She figures we hate her 'cause we told her off. She ain't gonna realize 'till too late we tell her off 'cause we care. We're meanies, remember?"

Michaelangelo sighed. "I'll go up, y'all keep on lookin' down here. There's more places down here than up there that she'd go."

"Alright," the other agreed.

Michaelangelo started to climb, when he felt someone latch onto his leg. He looked down at his pink bandana wearing sister and sighed. "Mily, go on with the others. I'll find her, okay?"

"I wanna go with you," Mily insisted. "I'm her roommate; I gotta find her, Mikey. If not, I'll have a nightlight on for nothin'."

Michaelangelo sighed, hating when his sisters looked ready to cry. "Fine. Raph, I'm takin' Mily. You keep an' eye on the rest."

"We're _not_ babies!" Machias declared. "We c'n take care of ourselves an' Raph!"

"Fine, fine," Michaelangelo mumbled, grabbing Mily and yanking her up onto his shell, so he could get them out of there faster.

"C'mon," Raphael told the others. "We'd best find her 'fore Sensei finds out and has our hides for it."

Machias, Raphiella, Ziptango, and TygeroftheWynd quickly hurried after their brother in red, knowing just how right he was.

Michaelangelo reached top and silently climbed out, Mily still hanging off his shell. "Shh," he whispered, as he set her down and led the way down the deserted alley.

Mily stuck close behind her brother, wondering just what Master Splinter would think if he knew one of his youngest was up top without having had passed the Trials. She muttered softly, as she crashed into her brother, having had not been paying attention like she should've been.

Michaelangelo made sure to keep her hidden, as he cautiously looked around. It was still daylight out, so this was _very_ risky – especially since Mily had no jacket or anything on that would cover her up. Once he was sure the coast was clear, he let her back onto his shell and very quickly climbed up the nearby fire escape, so that they were now on the roof of the building.

"It'll be easier and safer to look this way. Just don't let any planes or anything see yah," he instructed, letting her down once more.

Mily nodded then carefully peered over the edge of the building, making sure she couldn't be seen.

The two of them did this for a while, hopping from one building to the next – Mily always on her brother's back when it came time to roof jump. She was too scared to do it, and he wouldn't have let her do so anyway.

Back in the sewers the others were still looking. They were hoping somebody would find her soon, as it was getting late and some of them were getting tired, though they were determined to find her.

"Where do yah think she went?" Raphiella said finally. "I mean, we've never been to these parts of the sewers before. Sensei won't let us wander far."

"I dunno," Raphael shrugged. "But I'm startin' to think Mikey had the right idea. Knowin' her, she went up top just outta spite."

Ziptango sighed. "We should've blocked the door. We should've known she'd run."

Machias placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Don't worry, Zip. We'll find her. An' when she does – look out! 'Cause I'ma knock some sense into her!"

Raphael smirked slightly. "Now, Machias, yanno Sensei won't approve of that."

Machias shrugged. "Oh, well. He'll just hafta deal."

TygeroftheWynd smiled, listening to them. "Why is Lenni never here to hear these things?"

"'Cause she rather run off an' give us all heart failure," Raphael answered, shaking his head.

Mily was getting sleepy, as her and Michaelangelo looked around. It was late and they should've all been home long ago, some of the younger ones in bed even.

Michaelangelo was now carrying Mily on his shell, not bothering to let her down, knowing how tired she was becoming. "We'll find her soon," he assured the girl with him. "Lenni's probably tired right now as well."

Mily nodded, then leaned up over his shoulder to peer down below. "Look!" She cried, pointing. "It's Lenni! It's her! We gotta help her!"

Michaelangelo looked down, groaning inwardly as he saw she was being attacked by a gang of thugs. "Figures she wouldn't manage to stay outta trouble."

Lenore was fighting off her attackers as best she could, but with her ninjitsu being what it was, she wasn't having very much luck. Sure, she could dodge them all right at times, but not always. She was slowly starting to wish she'd paid more attention during practice, rather than giving Sensei and Leonardo a hard time about everything.

"Lemme go!" Lenore screamed, as she was captured. She hung between two thugs, kicking and struggling wildly. "Lemme go!"

"Now, why should we, Freak?" One punk asked. "Hmm? It's not like yah got a home to go too. Yah too weak, an' pathetic. Nobody would want you, not ever."

Lenore's eyes filled with tears, as her plastron was punched and kicked repeatedly. She was thinking of home and how she'd wished she'd never left. "I wanna go home!" She finally wailed.

"Oh, we'll take yah home," another thug smirked. "An' we'll have lotsa fun with yah too."

Lenore was losing her struggle, as she'd been beaten pretty badly. She let out a lone cry, wishing for the one she thought to be no where nearby. "MIKEYYY!"


	7. Who Says You Can't Go Home

Disclaimer: Day and Lenni don't own the Ninja Turtles. How many times have we said this so far? I don't wanna say it anymore, it's depressing. :o(

* * *

Michelangelo's heart wrenched when he heard his little sister scream his name. He hated seeing any of his siblings in pain or fear. Mily was already scrambling down from his back, yanking her tessen fan from her belt. He shook his head at her.

"Stay here," he ordered and swung down over the side of the building, landing on a fire escape. He jumped off the fire escape and landed in the middle of the street gang. With lightening quick punches, he knocked the two guys holding Lenni backwards, breaking their hold on the youngest turtle.

"Mikey!" Lenni exclaimed, blinking her tear-filled eyes as her rescuer snatched her up into his arms. "You came, you came!" His hard gaze softened for a moment as he glanced down at her already bruising face.

"This wasn't your smartest plan, munchkin," Mikey said with only half his usual teasing nature. Lenni whimpered and buried herself into his arms. She just wanted to be safe. Turning back to the thugs, Mikey sized them up. There were about seven of them, not too bad odds for a ninja but he also had his little sisters to worry about. Pulling out a nunchuck, he swung it above his head, warding off any fresh attacks.

"Wha'zat?" asked one of the thugs, scratching his head with the hilt of a knife.

"A nunchuck?" Mikey supplied, whirling it faster. "It's a ninja's best friend!"

"No, that," the thug said. He pointed the knife point at Mikey. "I was wonderin' what you were."

"Oh, me?" Mikey asked, keeping up an air of friendly conversation. Maybe if he just confused them, they'd just run off or something. "I'm just your everyday, average, five foot three turtle man."

Another guy bobbed up and down as he tried to catch a good sight of Michelangelo.

"Looks like another freaky thing but it moves too fast, I can't tell," he said.

"You bet I move fast!" Michelangelo said with a cocky grin. "They don't call me Mikey Fastfeet for nothing."

"No one calls you Mikey Fastfeet," Mily rebuked. She was standing on the fire escape, her tessen fan unfolded at her side. Mikey gave her an exasperated look.

"I told you to stay on the roof!"

"I was bored," Mily complained, tapping the fan against her hip.

"What is this, the invasion of the little green people?" cried one of the thugs. With a shout, he took a swing at Mikey who easily sidestepped him, avoiding the punch completely. Mily jumped down to join her brother. Smaller, she could maneuver through the gang with greater ease. There were a couple cries of pain as the razor edge of Mily's fan cut across exposed skin.

"Get over here!" Mikey shouted, waving his free hand at Mily. His other arm was wrapped around Lenni, keeping her close. The pink-wearing turtle squealed as a thug lunged for her. He fell on his face as she raced out of the way. She used his back as a springboard, running then landing on him before jumping into the air. Doing a couple more twisting back flips through the gang, she managed to end up right next to Mikey, her shell pressed up against his.

"Now what?" she asked him, holding her fan out in front of her. She was tired but she was going to protect her brother and sister until the very end. The thugs were about five feet away, pausing while they tried to come up with a good idea as well.

"This is usually when Leonardo pops up and goes 'I have a plan!'," Mikey said with a dry chuckle. He was not used to being in a leadership position and he was pretty sure that he did not like it. He looked down at Lenni. "Hey, Lenni, do you think you can stand? I can fight better if I can use both my hands."

She bit her lip and then nodded slowly. "I think so. Mm-hmm."

"There you go," he said. Giving her an encouraging smile, Mikey put her down on her feet. She wobbled a bit and then sat down on the ground in the corner. They had been backed up to the end of the alley and there was no clear path of escape.

"Mily, I need you to watch Lenni for me," Mikey said quickly, looking his pink-wearing sister right in the eye. She nodded and raised her tessen fan up near her face.

"I can do that," she said. Mikey smiled; he would have to tell her how proud he was of her when they got back to the lair. He pulled his other nunchuck from his belt and blocked a high kick from one of the gang members.

"Tsk, tsk, attacking a guy when his back is turned," Mikey scolded. He swung a nunchuck around and hit the guy in the stomach, putting him on the ground. The others started to close in on the three turtles, getting closer each time they made a move. Mikey was doing everything he could to keep them back but the numbers were against them.

Mily was in a half panic. She was running on adrenaline now, trying to help Mikey but obey his wishes at the same time. She regretted ever coming down off that rooftop.

"Mily, I don't wanna be here!" cried Lenni. The youngest turtle was curled up in a ball in the corner, her arms over her head.

"Mikey's gonna take us home, don't worry," Mily said, trying to calm herself and her sister. She wished desperately that she had a shell cell but Donatello had not made enough for everyone so only the guys carried them all the time.

Mily screamed as a large man in baggy pants and a sweatshirt got past Mikey and lashed out at her. She did not block in time and his fist caught her jaw. It hurt more than a stray punch from her siblings ever did. She darted out with her tessen fan and sliced him across the wrist, making him recoil with a curse. Mikey saw him and delivered a blow to the thug's head, knocking him out.

"Mily, take Lenni and get out of here!" Mikey yelled without any of his normal jovial nature in his tone. He took a swing at another gang member, trying to force them away.

Mily grabbed Lenni's arm. "Can you stand up? C'mon Lenni, we gotta go, please, c'mon," she pleaded, tugging on her sister's arm. Lenni stumbled to her feet, tears falling down her cheeks. "That's great," Mily said. While Mikey covered for them, Mily led Lenni over to the fire escape. Lenni started to climb but stopped halfway up, clinging to the cold metal rungs.

"I don't think I can, Mily," she said fearfully, blinking down at her sister. Mily grimaced.

"You have to!" she demanded and tried to shove the other turtle up the next few rungs. She looked down, frightened, as one of the men grabbed onto the end on the ladder. She swiped at him with the tessen fan but he leaned away, avoiding her weary strikes. He grabbed her by the leg and yanked.

"Gotcha now, ya little freak!" he exclaimed. Lenni cried out as Mily was pulled down to the ground and held in the stranger's arms. She kicked and screamed but her actions were futile.

"Let my sister go!" she screeched but in her state, she was helpless to do anything. "Mikey!" she called out to her brother, trying to alert him to Mily's plight. He saw what she was screaming about and tried to reach his little sisters. He felt that everything was falling apart and he could not do anything to stop it.

Suddenly a brown blur streaked down from the rooftops, landing amidst the gang with a flurry of soft robes.

"Do not touch my daughter," Master Splinter snapped as he landed a few good licks on the man who had grabbed Mily. The pink-wearing turtle dropped to the ground and quickly flipped away from her captor. She gave her father a grateful smile before hurrying back to help Lenni. The youngest turtle was just staring, amazed that he had found them. Mily snapped her out of her amazement and they made it up to the first landing of the fire escape.

"Master Splinter!" Michelangelo shouted, never happier to see the mutant that he called father and teacher. The ninja sensei gave his son a silent nod before attacking the people who had dared to harm his children.

"Is that a rat?" one of the thugs cried out.

"Ugh! What kind of monsters are there in Manhattan?" another one spat. Master Splinter knocked him backwards with a well-aimed kick.

"The ninja variety!" Mikey supplied the quick-thinking quip.

Master Splinter's stick landed heavily on the thugs. He showed no mercy as he leapt and twisted around the criminals, laying injury upon injury to them. His skill combined with Michelangelo's renewed energy, they quickly gave the gang a good reason to turn around and hightail it out of that alley.

"I'm outta here!"

"Yeah, you can keep the little freak!" one of them shouted back as he flew towards the end of the alley. The rest of the gang was quick to follow, not wanting to face the continuing wrath of the ninja master and his son.

"You better get out of here!" Michelangelo yelled after their retreating forms. As the last of them disappeared off into the streets, Mikey turned to look at his sensei. "You got skills, Sensei! And how'd you find us?" he asked, rather confused.

Master Splinter shook his head, his gaze rising upward until it caught Mily's frightened eyes, shining in the dark. It was past sunset now and time for everyone to be in bed. "I will explain when we are better concealed, Michelangelo. We must worry about our safety now."

Michelangelo saw what he was looking at and quickly nodded. "Gotcha, Sensei." He motioned for Master Splinter to take the lead and the rat immediately climbed up the fire escape. Mily was there when he reached the landing. She flung her arms about her father's waist and buried her head in his robes. Making shushing noises, he brushed his hand along her head.

"You were very brave, little one," Master Splinter said. He kissed her forehead lightly. "You make me proud."

She gave him a watery smile and backed away, letting him go to Lenni. Lenni let out a sob as she saw Master Splinter coming towards her.

"I'm sorry!" she cried, shaking her head, sending her dirty bandanna tails back and forth. "I didn't mean to, I didn't think they cared. Punker and Splinter and Hex said…" She broke down into wracking sobs. Master Splinter sighed as he bent down and wiped away her tears with his furry hand.

"My child, no one was trying to get rid of you. We love you so much; you are an integral part of our family."

Lenni blinked up at him, hearing his kind words but not quite believing them. She looked at Mikey who nodded, smiling at her.

"We always want you, Lenni, no matter what we say sometimes," he told her. Master Splinter helped Lenni to her feet and she fell against him, emotionally and physically spent. As he hugged her, Michelangelo put a hand on Mily's shoulder.

"Do you think you can make it back to the lair on your own two feet?" he asked. Since the girls had gotten bigger, he couldn't carry two of them around any more. It had been easier to haul them around when they were eight and nine. Mily nodded silently and Mikey gave her one of his thousand watt smiles. "You're such a good kid, Mily," he said, giving her a squeezing hug. She laughed a bit.

"That's what they all say."

Mikey went over to Lenni and swung her up into his arms, cuddling her against his plastron. Master Splinter went back down the fire escape first with Mily right behind him. Together, the two managed to pull the manhole cover in the alley off.

"Descend first, Michelangelo," Master Splinter said and the orange-wearing turtle went down the ladder one-handed. When he got to the bottom, he shook his head at the nearly-sleeping girl resting against him.

"You're going to give me grey hairs, you know that?" he teased her, just happy to have all his sisters back and safe again. Lenni giggled.

"You don't have hair," she told him, shaking her head.

"You're bad enough that I'll grow some to go grey just for you," he said, shifting her in his arms. "Don't do it again," he said in a begging tone. She nodded sleepily.

"I won't."

Mily popped up at Michelangelo's side and grinned at Lenni and Mikey. "Can we go home now?" she asked, ready to drop with exhaustion. Master Splinter nodded as he joined them; he had just finished replacing the manhole cover.

"Let us go home."

* * *

Back at the lair, the Princess Bride had ended but no one had left the living room. Donatello and Leonardo did not have the heart to force their worried little sisters into bed. Donnie was sitting on the couch in between Danceingfae and Daydream. Danceingfae was trying to read a cooking magazine, borrowing some of the light from the lamp Leonardo was using to read by. He was sitting in an armchair, not really focusing but thinking about what he could have been doing to help with the search.

Donatello had one arm resting on Daydream who was curled up tightly into his side. She was asleep with her head resting on her bandaged hands that were folded over his knee. Beside her, Arista was sitting with her legs propped up on the coffee table. She was trying to watch the show that was on TV but it wasn't very interesting. Laying on the floor in front of her was Reiko. Hexadecimal was beside Arista, leaning against the end of the couch. Normally she would complain about her squished up position, but she did not feel like it at the moment.

"Wonder how it's going," Splinter said, looking towards the hallway. As if on cue, they heard the door open.

"We're back!" Ziptango yelled as the search team clomped back into the lair. In the living room, Donatello and Leonardo shared a wince as they heard Raphael throwing stuff around. Machias, Ziptango, Raphiella, and Tyger all trudged into the living room, looking dejected.

"Did you find her?" Danceingfae asked as she looked over the back of the couch. Tyger shook her head and flopped down on the floor.

"We looked everywhere," Raphiella said hopelessly as she came in. "No sign of her at all."

"Raph thinks she went Up Top," Machias put in.

"Why would she do that? It's dangerous," Leonardo said, shaking his head slowly.

Machias shrugged and stretched her arms above her head. "I dunno, It's Lenni. I'm going to bed. I'll see you all in the morning."

"How can you possibly go to bed?" demanded Punker. "Your sister's still out there, alone!"

"I'm no good to her drop dead tired," said Machias with a notion of common sense. "Besides, I didn't see you heading up a search team."

Punker scowled horribly but she did not have a good comeback for that. She and Splinter were sitting at the card table, still trying to amuse themselves with games. They had gone onto chess now but the pieces had not been moved in a while.

Raphael stormed into the living room and flung himself down onto the smaller couch. He glared at everyone as if it was their entire fault.

"Where's Mily and Mikey?" Leonardo asked, looking at him carefully.

"Hell if I know," Raphael snarled crossing his arms over his plastron. "Together and Up Top wherever they are."

"Hmm…did they find her?" Daydream asked, opening one eye to look up at Donnie. He shook his head and patted her arm.

"No, but we're going to," he said. She smiled a bit and snuggled back down into him.

"I know you will," she said with absolute certainty. Donnie smiled but he wished he had her certainty. Leonardo stood up.

"I'm going to look for her," he said firmly. Raphael got to his feet and leveled his gaze at Leonardo.

"I'm goin' with ya," he said, daring Leo to say no.

"You just got back. You need to rest," Leonardo said but Raphael just scowled.

"I'm going-"

The door opened and the two of them stopped talking and turned their heads towards the noise. The girls looked at each other, waiting anxiously to see if Mikey and Mily were going to come in empty-handed too.

Michaelangelo shuffled into the lair, holding a sleeping young turtle. She'd fallen asleep about five minutes or so ago, finally having calmed down enough to do so.

Everyone in the lair gasped, upon seeing the state of their baby sister. They couldn't believe all the bruises and cuts she had on her, making them start to regret their harsh words from earlier.

"What happened?" Leonardo demanded, still on his feet.

Michaelangelo shook his head." She went up top," he replied. "She got jumped by a bunch of thugs. Mily and I found her just in time."

"Where _is_ Mily?" Raphael asked.

"She's coming," Michaelangelo replied calmly.

Mily walked in then, sort of being supported by Master Splinter. She was completely spent and more than ready to collapse into her bed for a good night's sleep.

"Sensei?" Everyone said, completely confused.

"Donatello," Master Splinter began calmly. "Do take care of them, so that they can get some rest."

"Yes, Sensei," Donatello replied, quickly taking Mily from him and leading the way to the infirmary.

Michaelangelo followed, though he was stopped briefly by a herd of girls coming to check on their sister.

"Is she gonna be okay, Mikey?" Daydream asked in a small childlike voice, after having had gotten up off the couch finally.

Michaelangelo nodded at them. "She'll be fine, once Donnie patches her up. I promise."

The girls all gave a huge sigh of relief, then let their orange clad brother pass. They all returned to the spots they'd been sitting or lying, as to wait for the two who had been injured.

"I'ma beat those punks to a bloody pulp!" Raphael exclaimed. "How _dare_ they attack her like that! See how they like somebody their own size to put a beating on 'em!"

"Raphael!" Master Splinter snapped slightly. "There is no need for that. Michaelangelo and I took care of them. They shall hopefully think twice about attacking anyone in this family again."

Raphael flopped down on a couch, his arms crossed over his plastron angrily, though he looked more like he was pouting. "They damned well _better_ stay away! 'Cause next time I'ma _kill_ 'em!"

"_Raphael_! _Enough_!" Master Splinter ordered.

Raphael muttered under his breath, daring to glance at Leonardo, who shared his look. Both of them knew, should this happen again they would personally go hunt the idiots down again.

"Now, we must discuss some things, before you all go off to bed," Master Splinter told them. "Until further notice _all_ of you are restricted to the lair. The only times you may leave are to go on patrol, but only those who have passed the Trials are allowed to go on patrol."

"Hey! That's _not_ fair!" The girls who had yet to take the Trials exclaimed.

"Was it fair to me, when you all lied to me about their whereabouts?" Master Splinter retorted.

Leonardo looked down at his feet, as Danceingfae blushed. HexAdecimal, TygeroftheWynd, and Splinter all looked uncomfortable as well.

"Also, I do not need any more of my daughters getting injured. Yes, I know it is apart of our life, but I will _not_ stand for my children to get hurt because of foolish things. I want you all to be safe. I must be sure that you will be able to handle yourselves well enough, so that when attacked you will be able to fend them off and escape to safety. I can not bare to lose _any_ of you! You are _my_ children, and I must keep your best interests in mind. So for these reasons, you are all restricted and will be required to practice your ninjitsu a little longer each day than what we have done thus far. Now, I bid you all a goodnight and suggest you get some rest."

"Night Sensei," they all mumbled softly, none to happy with themselves or the circumstances at the moment.

"So what're we s'pose to do? We're gonna be stuck in the lair all day for who knows _how_ long! That'll get _boring_!" TygeroftheWynd whined. "An' when we get bored, we get in trouble!"

Machias smirked. "Well, least that means we usually find _some_ excitement."

Splinter laughed softly. "Yeah, even if the excitement makes Sensei mad, it's still fun."

HexAdecimal yawned. "I think I'm going to bed now. If we gotta practice longer, we're gonna need the sleep."

Ziptango nodded. "Yeah…I'm not looking forward to that."

"Me neither," Daydream agreed sleepily.

They all heard snoring then, and laughed when they realized Raphiella had fallen asleep with her head in Raphael's lap.

"Only Ella could sleep through Sensei's lectures," Leonardo commented.

Raphael shook his head. "I'll get her to bed," he said, carefully scooping her up into his arms, and padding his way down towards the bedrooms once on his feet.

"I suggest you all follow her lead," Leonardo stated, once their laughter had died down some.

"Night, Leo," they all chorused, each taking a turn to give him a hug and/or kiss. Soon, all but Daydream had left the den.

"Day, don't you think you should get some sleep?" Leonardo asked.

"I'm waiting for Lenni," Daydream said stubbornly, stifling a yawn. "I wanna see that she's okay for myself."

"Alright," Leonardo sighed, sitting down next to her. "If you fall asleep, I'll wake you up, alright?"

Daydream nodded, snuggling into her eldest brother. She was glad he was being nice tonight, as she probably would've cried long ago otherwise. Tonight was crazy enough as it was, and having a breakdown wouldn't help matters much.

Meanwhile in the infirmary, Donatello was busy patching Mily up. He'd decided to leave Lenore until later, as she was more bruised and beaten that Mily was.

Mily winced as Donatello checked her face out as gently as it could. She was starting to bruise from where the one thug had hit her, and it hurt!

"Well, you're going to have a nice bruise," Donatello told her.

"Obviously," Mily muttered, none too pleased. "I shoulda been able to block him!"

Michaelangelo shook his head. "You weren't ready for battle. You should have _never_ come down off the rooftop. You should have done as told and stayed put."

Mily hung her head, Sensei's praise leaving her as Michaelangelo of all people admonished her for her decisions.

"You're just lucky he only hit you once and one bruise is all you're gonna get," Michaelangelo went out. "He could've _killed_ you, Mily! Bad enough I had to fight to save Lenni, but then to have you come down after being told _not_ too, and making me hafta worry about both of you – that was just _wrong_. I was worried about you enough as it was. I didn't need more worry to add on top of it! We're just lucky Sensei came when he did, otherwise, I don't know _what_ would've happened!"

Mily blinked back her unwanted tears. She'd only wanted to help and make him proud, but it seemed to have backfired on her immensely.

Michaelangelo sighed, running his free hand over his face. "But other than that, I'm glad you're okay. I felt proud of you tonight, Mily – even if you didn't do as told. If you hadn't have come down, Lenni might not have gotten out of harm's way when she did. She might've been hurt even more than she already was. So for that, I'm grateful. Just promise me, you _won't_ scare me like that again! Don't purposely put yourself in harm's way, okay?"

Mily nodded slightly, her head still hung as Donatello made sure she had no other injuries.

Michaelangelo lifted her chin up with his finger once Donatello had stepped out of the way briefly. He smiled warmly at his little sister. "I love yah, Kid. I'm proud of yah too. I just don't want nothin' bad to happen to yah, okay?"

Mily smiled some as she nodded once more. "Okay, Mikey."

"Thank-you," Michaelangelo said, kissing her forehead affectionately. "Now, if Donnie's done pokin' yah, scat onto bed, alright?"

Donatello nodded. "I'm done."

Mily hopped down off the table, hugging her brothers tight and patting Lenore's leg. "Don't keep her _too_ long, okay? I'ma get lonely otherwise."

Donatello smiled. "I promise to try and not keep her too long. It just depends on how badly she's hurt, is all."

Mily nodded again, then hurried off out of the infirmary. She smiled more when she spotted Daydream and Leonardo sitting on the couch, the television still on, but much lower than it had been when she'd come in. "Night!"

Leonardo looked up and smiled. "Night, Mily."

"How's Lenni?" Daydream asked, her eyes closed.

"I don't know," Mily admitted. "Donnie hasn't checked her over yet."

"Oh…okay," Daydream sighed. She didn't like not knowing how her sister was.

"But I'm sure she'll be okay," Mily assured her. "Mikey brought her home just like I said he would. An' Donnie promised to try an' not keep her too long. But she's gonna be awful sore for a few days. I know, 'cause my bruise already hurts an' she gots tons more."

Leonardo smiled at her. "I'm sure you'll manage, especially with all the attention you're going to be getting."

Mily beamed. "I'm gonna like that!" She giggled some, then hurried off to bed.

Back in the infirmary, Michaelangelo had gently waken Lenore and set her upon the examining table.

Lenore whimpered softly as she was set down. Not so much because it hurt, but because she didn't want to leave the safety of her brother's arms. She felt like she was eight-years-old again and desperately needed to be cuddled.

Michaelangelo gently ran a hand over her head to calm her some. "I'm not going anywhere," he promised. "Donnie's just gonna patch yah up some, then yah can go back to sleep."

Lenore eyed her purple clad brother warily. "No needles," she told him.

Donatello just sighed, not having the heart to tell her that she probably would need stitches for some of her wounds. "Just let me check you over and get you cleaned up, alright?"

Lenore nodded quietly. She winced and squirmed some when he cleaned her wounds. It stung like the dickens, but she kept quiet, though lone tears streamed down her face. She felt like such a fool for taking off and going up top. She knew only an idiot would do what she had done, and that just made her feel even worse. She had proven to her family just how stupid she truly was.

Michaelangelo stayed rooted next to her, though he made sure to stay out of Donatello's way, as he held the youngest turtle's hand.

Donatello gently poked and prodded her, wanting to make sure that nothing was broken. After a short while, he smiled softly. "Well, nothing seems to be broken. You've got a couple bruised ribs, a black eye, and a fat lip, but nothing that can't be cured within time."

Michaelangelo watched his brother carefully, sensing what eh was going to say next.

"But, you do have some wounds that need stitching," Donatello went on carefully. "There's no way around it. We can't just leave them gaping open. We do and they could get infected and you might end up losing a limb."

Lenore's eyes went wide, and she immediately squirmed away, reaching for her brother in orange. She was seeking protection, as she _hated_ needles with a passion!

Michaelangelo sighed and rubbed her head some more. "Munchkin, you gotta let Donnie fix yah up. You know I won't leave yah, I never do."

Lenore shook her head, her dirty yellow and blue bandana tails whipping about furiously.

Donatello sighed and left the room a moment. He felt relieved when he found Daydream still up. He knew the girls could talk sense into her better than they could at times, now probably being one of them.

"Day, are you still up, Honey?"

Daydream squirmed some, then sat up with Leonardo's help. "Wha?"

"I need you to come help me with Lenni," Donatello told her. "I've got to stitch her up, and so far she's not going to let me."

Leonardo helped the girl up, and ushered her to the infirmary, as Donatello headed back.

Daydream stumbled about, following her brother in purple, wanting to help. "Lenni?" She mumbled.

Lenore looked over at her sister in tears. "Don't let him stick me, Day!" She cried. "_Please_!"

Daydream frowned some. "But he's gotta fix yah up, Lenni. I can't have yah without limbs, silly."

Lenore pouted, not looking one bit happy as Donatello got his stuff prepared. "_Please_ Day!" She begged. "I'll do _anything_!"

"Not 'less you let Donnie stitch yah up," Daydream replied, using the same tactics on Lenore that her sisters had used on her earlier. "I let Donnie fix my hands up earlier, an' yanno how much I _hate_ that."

"But – But – " Lenni tried to reason.

Daydream shook her head. "Wanna know what made Sensei go lookin' for yah?"

"What?" Lenore asked curiously, Michaelangelo cocking his head to the side as well.

"They told him y'all were lookin' for frogs," Daydream replied.

Michaelangelo eyed Leonardo who was still standing in the doorway, and watched him nod.

"But I don't _like_ frogs!" Lenore protested, jerking her arm away as Donatello neared her with the needle and thread.

Donatello nodded his head to his brother, who immediately took his hint. He waited as Michaelangelo tightened his grip on her left hand, and Leonardo took hold of her right.

Lenore squeezed their hands, not realizing she'd now technically been captured by her brothers.

"I know," Daydream giggled. "Sensei knows that too 'cause you always cry when people chase yah with 'em."

"Well, they're _scary_!" Lenore insisted, jerking slightly again, only unable to move far. "Hey! Leggo!"

"No can do, Kiddo," Michaelangelo told her. "You keep jerking an' Donnie's gonna end up hurtin' yah."

"He's gonna hurt me anyway," Lenore mumbled miserably.

"Leo said they didn't even know Sensei had left! He was all sneaky and ninja like!" Daydream went on, looking her sister in the face. She wanted to help keep her clam, but she also didn't want to watch Donatello stitch her up. "No wonder he's the Master! He c'n do _every_thing!"

Lenore nodded her head in agreement. "You shoulda seen him jump off the roof!" She exclaimed. "All I saw was a flash of brown an' his robes followin' him down! He kicked their butts real good too! Serves 'em right for attackin' me when I didn't even do nothin'!"

"What were yah doin'?" Daydream wanted to know, seeing her sister wince and tear up as Donatello began to patch her up.

"Lookin' for someplace to sleep," Lenore admitted. "But it was all too dirty an' gross! Yick!"

Daydream smiled, that sounded so like her sister. She _hated_ to get messy, unless she was tackling Raphael – then she didn't care _where_ she landed or _what_ she landed in. That being the case the last time her and Raphael had come trudging in covered in some unexplainable goop.

"They called me a Freak," Lenore frowned then. "I'm not a freak, am I?"

"Nah," Michaelangelo assured her. "I'm the freak, remember?"

"But Raph don't like that word, an' he swears all the time!" Lenore pointed out. "So how can you be a freak, when Raph hates the word but likes you?"

Leonardo sighed. "Raph doesn't like it, because he doesn't look at it like we do. He takes it as a personal insult, just because we're different. But everybody's different in their own way, and that's what makes them special."

"Oh, okay," Lenore nodded, managing to smile once more at her sister. "I'm sorry 'bout earlier, Day. I didn't mean to shove you an' startle Klunk."

"It's okay," Daydream assured her. "An' Klunk's okay too."

Lenore smiled a bit more. She _loved_ Klunk – not just because he was Michaelangelo's, but because Klunk always seemed to follow her around and was always there when she needed to hug somebody.

"All done," Donatello said suddenly, as he finished tying off the last stitch. "Now, all I have to do is bandage you up, and you're all set to go."

Lenore gave a huge sigh of relief, as her brother bandaged her up. She felt glad to be home – for now.

"See you in the morning, Kiddo," Leonardo smiled, as he scooped Daydream up. "We're off to bed."

"Heeey!" Daydream whined, yawning. "I'm not sleepyyy!"

Leonardo shook his head at her. "And even now, she still denies it." He tickled Daydream lightly, making her squirm, then carried her to the room she still shared with Ziptango.

"Thanks, Donnie," Lenore said softly. "I'm not very bright, am I?"

Donatello shook his head, smiling some. "Oh, I've no doubt you're bright," he told her. "You just make some mistakes along the way, that's all."

Lenore gave him a grateful smile and a hug once he was done.

Donatello hugged her back, then set about cleaning up the infirmary. "Now, I suggest you go get some rest. Sensei's probably gonna want to discuss this in the morning."

Lenore groaned as Michaelangelo scooped her back up into his arms. "He better lemme sleep long. I'm _so_ tired!"

Donatello just smiled softly, and nodded as Michaelangelo carried her out of the room. "I hope nobody else sneaks off and gets hurt this week," he thought. "Or I'm going to need more supplies."

Mily cracked an eye open when she heard someone enter the room she and Lenore still shared. She smiled some, upon seeing her brother and sister. "Hey….you better now?"

Lenore yawned, nodding some. "Uh-huh. Donnie patched me all up."

"That's good," Mily said quietly. She gave a small, tired giggle when she saw Michaelangelo lie down with Lenore. "You stayin' Mikey?"

Michaelangelo shrugged. "Not like I got much of a choice," he replied light-heartedly. "Lenni's got a death grip."

Mily giggled a little more, knowing just how true that probably was. "Night, Mikey."

"Night," Michaelangelo replied, before covering himself and the youngest turtle up with her blanket. He cuddled her close and listened to her and Mily both breathe for quite a while, before finally falling asleep himself.


	8. Restirction Mischief

Disclaimer: Lenni and Day don't own the Ninja Turtles or their buddies! Everyone seems to own themselves or be owned by other, powerful people. ;o)

Thirteen-year-olds: Dancingfae, Machias, Splinter, Hexadecimal, Punker, Arista; Twelve-year-olds: Ziptango, Daydream, Mily, Lenni, Tyger, Raphaella

**REVIEW IF YOU'RE ALIVE OUT THERE! ;o)**

* * *

The next week was an interesting seven days for the Hamato family.

Mily joined back into ninjitsu and school lessons the day after her adventure. Her war wounds had got her all the attention she would ever want. Tyger and Raphaella, both on kitchen duty, even fixed her up a milkshake for breakfast, saying that heroes should only get the best.

Mikey was also given the first class treatment while everyone took extra care to be nice to Lenni. The youngest in the clan was allowed to lay out of practice for a few days to give her wounds time to heal up. She had enjoyed it at first, but she was quickly recognizing that being restricted to minimal activity really wasn't all that fun.

Probation and extra practice was never a good combination for sixteen restless ninja students. The restriction from patrols drove the younger group into a fine state of boredom that was whipped into aggravation when the older group teased them for not being able to go out. Creativity usually cultivated when there was boredom and that always led to practical jokes and other destructive means of releasing energy. Except for Leo, who had an uncanny amount of focus anyways, only Arista and Machias were really paying attention during ninjitsu practice. The rest of the family melted into a pool of barely-congealed chaos.

* * *

"I am going to MURDER you!" screamed Punker, her fists darting out in front of her as she lunged at a giggling Ziptango. The lilac-wearing turtle easily ducked out of the way of the raging attack.

"You need to calm down," Ziptango advised in a perfected sage voice. "Anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering-"

"You're the only one who's going to suffer!" Punker leapt at her sister who shrieked and slid out of reach just in time not to be pummeled.

Punker was the vengeful victim of the culmination of yet another one of Ziptango's dastardly plans. Her contorted face was covered in white flour and so was the rest of her upper half. She had been 'antiqued', which meant Ziptango had crept up on her while she was napping and had hurled flour at her as hard as she could. It was a tactic often seen on Viva la Bam, one of Mikey's favorite shows. For some reason, Punker had not enjoyed being antiqued. She had woken up in a fine rage.

Trying to save herself, Ziptango ran into Donatello's lab.

"Save me!" she shouted at her shocked older brother right before she dove under the table he was working at.

"Zip…" Donnie started, quite confused and more than a bit annoyed.

Punker came in right behind Ziptango, grabbing the doorway with both hands and breathing hard. "Where is she, Donnie?"

Donatello frowned at her and set the piece of metal he was playing with down on the table. "Haven't I told you guys to knock before you come in?"

"C'mon, I know she's in here!" Punker exclaimed in a snarl. She started walking around, bent over to look under the tables. "Come out, come out, wherever you are…"

"I mean, I could be working with dangerous chemicals for all you know," Donnie continued, ignoring her as she searched. Ziptango was already out of reach, but he would definitely have a talk with her once Punker left. He needed alone time and a better lock for his door.

"I am going to hurt you when I find you, Zip," threatened Punker. She walked around Donatello as if she suspected that he was hiding her or something. Donatello was amused.

"I didn't stuff her down my shell or anything," he teased. Punker growled at him.

"You can't protect her forever," she snapped as she stomped out of the lab, slamming the door behind her. He listened as she pulled a chair over and sat it beside the door. She was obviously going to wait for Ziptango to leave the lab and then she was going to attack.

"You can come out now," Donnie sighed, picking up his bit of metal again. Behind him, the lower door of a metal cabinet slid open and Ziptango fell out onto the floor. Donatello raised an eye ridge as Ziptango stood up, brushing herself off. "You may be getting a little too big for that."

"Never," Ziptango replied, grinning at him, "It's my favorite hiding spot of all time. I've been getting in there since the day you scavenged it."

"Yeah, you were what, nine then?" He said. He brushed his hand through the air over her head. "You might've grown a few inches in three years."

"You think?" she replied, sitting down in one of the mismatched bar stools Donnie kept in the lab. She gave the door a wary glance. "Do you mind if I hang out in here?"

"Where it's relatively safe?" Donnie asked, but he nodded his head. "Sure, at least until she decides to smoke you out or something. Then you'll have to leave and face her wrath."

"Haha." Ziptango rolled her eyes and then pointed at the piece of metal he was working on. "What's that?"

"It's supposed to go on Raphael's shell cycle," Donatello said, leaning over the table to hand it to her. "I don't know exactly what it is though because he just handed it to me and said it fell off his bike." He gave her an exasperated smile. "A lot of information to go off of, right?"

Ziptango laughed. "Sounds like him." She looked at the metal, trying to figure out what it was so she could help her brother. "Maybe it's the foot rest or something."

"Maybe," he said. The computer in the corner caught his eye and he nodded his head at it. "How about you take it and look it up on the internet as punishment for doing whatever you did to Punker?"

"Sure!" Ziptango exclaimed, grateful to be given something interesting to do as 'punishment'. "Oh, and I antiqued her, by the way," she added smugly as she jumped off her chair and walked over to the computer.

"Figures," Donatello mumbled as he reached to pick up a CD-player somebody had broken. Michelangelo's shows always managed to inspire pranks.

* * *

Hexadecimal was laying on her bed, drawing in the notebook in front of her. Sitting Indian style on her floor was Raphiella and Tyger; they were playing the card game, Egyptian Rat Screw. It was a very heated game because the loser had to go steal one of Raphael's weights from his room. Tyger yelped as Raphiella's hand came down on top of hers right after she slapped the pile. She scowled as she pulled the cards away, having rightfully won them.

"Do you think Arista and Machias are going to pass the Trials?" Ella asked, looking over at Hex. Her older sister did not glance up from her drawing.

"Arista will, no doubt," Hex said, confident in her sister's abilities.

"What about Match?" Tyger prodded. She batted Ella's hand away from the pile as she hit it again. "Hey, not yet, that was a five, not a two. Fork one over."

"It was upside down," pouted Ella as she stuck one of her cards under the pile.

"But what about Match?" Tyger asked since Hexadecimal had given no answer. Hex sighed and stretched out on her bed.

"Well, I think she had a good chance, but it's really tough," Hex explained. She idly picked up one of her sai and twirled it once around her finger. "There's so many things you have to do and you need to be prepared for each one."

"Like what?" Ella asked before pointing down at the stack. "You have to lay down, Ty."

"I'm gonna," muttered Tyger as she put another card on the pile.

"I'm not supposed to tell you," Hex said, picking up a fresh piece of charcoal. She started shading in her drawing.

"Well, now you have to," said Ella, intrigued by the mystery of the Trials. "No one ever tells us anything."

"All we know is that it's dangerous," said Tyger, nodding her head. "Please tell us?"

Hexadecimal sighed. They would just pester her until she told them anyways. "Fine, you monsters, I'll tell you."

"Yes!" Tyger and Ella cried in victory. Tyger leapt onto her sister's bed while Ella just scooted closer so she could hear better. Hex pulled her drawing closer and kept working on it while she was talking.

"Well, I'm not going to tell you everything, but I will tell you some things."

"Better than nothing," snorted Ella, pulling her knees up to her plastron. Hex continued.

"Master Splinter makes you go through all the katas that we know-"

"All of them?" asked Tyger, her eyes bugging out. "But that's so many!"

"It wouldn't be a Trial if it wasn't hard, idiot," Hex said, rolling her eyes towards the ceiling. Tyger frowned at being called a name but allowed Hex to continue. "If you complete all the katas from memory, then you have to prove your adeptness at the weapon you use most often."

"I guess Arista will use a katana," said Ella. Hex nodded.

"Most likely. After that, your stealth and intelligence are tested and I think that part is different for everyone."

"What did you have to do?" asked Tyger, completely absorbed in the tale of the Trials.

"I had to find my way home from 4th street by myself before the sun set," Hexadecimal said, a light frown on her face as she remembered the ordeal. It had not been fun, trying to find shadows and beat the clock at the same time. "I don't know what it'll be like for Arista and Machias."

She leaned away from her drawing, giving it a considering look. Picking it up off her bed, she showed it to Tyger and Ella. "What do you think?"

It was a drawing of one sai, laying on a table beside a vase with a single rose in it. It was black and white and a rather striking drawing. Ella grinned while Tyger gave her an enthusiastic thumbs-up.

"Good," said Hex. She flipped the notebook closed and stood up from her bed. "I'm going to go make myself an ice cream sundae, anybody want to help?"

"Only if I can have one too!" Ella exclaimed, jumping up to follow Hex. Tyger started to follow them but stopped, giving Hex a strange look.

"Wait, aren't you going to tell us more?" she asked. Hex smiled and shook her head.

"Nope." She disappeared down the hall and Tyger scrambled after her, her blue and white bandanna tails streaking behind her.

"No fair!"

The card game lay forgotten in the middle of Hex's room. Maybe they would finish it when they got back.

* * *

"Give me that wire thing over there," growled Raphael, motioning to the whisk which was stuck in a jar with a bunch of other kitchen utensils. Hex, Tyger, and Ella had just come in, demanding ice cream, and he was in no mood to remember the name of random kitchen things.

Annoyed about being ordered around, Arista pulled the whisk out and flung it at him. He scowled at her as he reached out and caught it before it hit his face. "Watch it."

"Why are we making pancakes for lunch, again?" Arista asked, throwing a longing look towards the doorway. She would have much rather been in the dojo, perfecting one of her katas, than stuck in the kitchen with Raphael on cooking duty.

"Because, I can make 'em," said Raphael as he stirred the whisk around the bowl. He hated cooking but he had learned enough of the craft to make about five things; pancakes, eggs, pizza, hard boiled eggs, and grilled cheese sandwiches.

Raphael's careless stirring caused some of the batter to fly out and smatter the walls and Arista. She frowned as she pulled a clump of pancake out of her blonde hair.

"I think we should make something different," Arista said. She reached over and forcefully dragged the bowl away from Raphael. He gave her a hard look and yanked it back.

"You go make something different," he said, motioning with the dripping whisk to the cabinets.

"But we're supposed to make it together," Arista complained as he went back to stirring. "It's like a team-building exercise."

"Arista, it's _lunch_," said Raphael, shaking his head, "It's not that deep."

"Fine," she replied, tossing her light blue bandanna tails as she walked towards the refrigerator.

Raphael's stirring became faster as she opened the fridge and started pulling things out. Why did she always have to fight with him? She was like a mini-Leo or something; he loved her, but they were almost always at odds. He was glad that Leo was going to be her mentor when she passed The Trials; he could handle Arista.

"I'm going to make chicken salad," Arista said, gathering her stuff together on the table.

"Whatever," mumbled Raphael. He crouched down to pull a skillet from one of the cabinets.

Arista grinned to herself as her red-wearing brother bumbled around the kitchen. Usually, Raphael was pretty graceful, for lack of a more masculine word, but he was completely out of his element in the kitchen.

"Raph."

"What?" snapped Raphael. He was fumbling around with the dials on the oven, trying to get the temperature right on the stove.

"Do you want any help?" Arista asked.

"No," he growled, sliding the skillet onto the warming stovetop. He grabbed a spatula from the utensil jar and watched the skillet like a mother watches her child.

Arista could have laughed but she kept a serious expression on her face. At least those pancakes wouldn't burn!

* * *

Leonardo was sitting at the card table in the living room, writing in a dark blue notebook. He was writing an essay about why he thought his katanas were the best weapon for him to use. It was quickly becoming a rather biased paper that declared that katanas were the most effective weapon ever. When it was finished, he was going to post it on the internet on one of the weapons websites.

He was watching over Lenni, who was lying on the couch, flipping through TV channels so fast that Splinter, who was resting in the armchair, was starting to complain.

"Quit that, you're going to give me a headache."

"Aw, stuff it," Lenni mumbled, burying her head into her pillow. She gave a muffled scream into the fabric before looking up again, a pleading expression on her face. "C'mon, can't I go outside with Mikey and everybody else?"

"'Everybody' is an exaggeration," Leonardo said. "Oh, and stop it with the hyper channel surfing."

"You just wanna squash the little fun I'm allowed to have," Lenni whined, flopping back down on the couch. She plucked at some of the loose threads on the cushions. "I wonder what they're doing."

"Having the best time ever, I imagine," Splinter teased. She hid behind the book she was reading when Lenni chucked her pillow at her brown-wearing sister.

Lenni finally let the TV rest on MTV, hoping she might get to see Backstreet Boys or some other group she liked. Leonardo, usually against the channel, only briefly glanced up with a disapproving look before going back to writing. Splinter became absorbed in the music, just like Lenni had planned for her to be.

Waiting until Leonardo's pencil was steadily working its way across the paper, Lenni slipped out from beneath her blanket. Splinter was not paying attention so it was easy for Lenni to sneak away. She was going outside to play with the rest of her family; she was not going to get stuck in the lair.

She got to the hallway when Leo's voice found her. "Lenni, get back in here."

"Awww…"

About fifteen minutes later, Arista swung in, one hand on the doorframe.

"Lunch is, um, ready?" she said with a strange pitch to her voice. Leonardo raised his eye ridges.

"You sound uncertain about that," he said with a laugh. Arista made a face.

"Talk to Raph," she said shortly and ducked back out of the living room.

"This could be interesting," Splinter mused as she followed her sister out of the room. Lenni gave Leo a dry look.

"Am I allowed to go to the table, warden?" she asked as she got up from the couch. He smiled as he stood up and stretched.

"I suppose so, as long as you come back here or go to your room when lunch is over."

"I'm hurt not dying!" Lenni wailed, stamping her foot on the ground. Grinning, Leo put a hand on her shoulder and steered her down the hall. Arista popped out of the kitchen.

"Hey, Leo, Raph wants you to go get everyone from outside," Arista told him. Leo frowned as he put Lenni into her seat.

"Why can't he do it?"

There were a number of loud crashes in the kitchen, like somebody was throwing metal pans into the sink. Arista winced and stuck her tongue out.

"He's not in a real good mood right now," she said. "He had a run-in with the stove…"

"Raph's never in a good mood," Splinter said. She sniffed at the air. "What's burning?"

"Pancakes," Arista supplied before rushing off to go find the others who were inside the lair. Leo pointed a finger at Lenni.

"You stay right there. Splinter, watch her."

"Will do, Mon Capitan," she said and saluted him. Lenni glared at him as he left the lair through the door and walked out into the sewers.

* * *

From her hidden position in the shadows, Danceingfae saw Leonardo walk out the door and into the line of fire. She did not want to compromise herself but she couldn't let her brother get creamed. Moving quickly, she sprung out from behind the pipes and grabbed his hand.

"Get down!" she cried, pulling him back with her. He nearly fell on her but he managed to keep his balance.

"What are you doing?" Leo demanded but she covered his mouth with both her hands and shook her head.

"Hush, would you!"

He pushed her hands away, glaring through the dim lights. "You better start explaining, Dance."

"We're helping Machias out with her training," Danceingfae whispered, looking around for any sign of moment. "It started out just as a game of tag and now it's sorta turned into a war."

"Let me guess, Mikey had something to do with it?" Leo asked, rubbing his forehead. He was going to get a headache. Dance nodded and Leo sighed.

"Well, I was just coming out here to tell you all that-" He suddenly shoved Danceingfae to the side, making her fall over into the sewer muck. An arrow stuck to the wall right where she had been kneeling.

"Stay still and let me shoot you!" came Daydream's yell. Leo poked his head over the top of the pipes to see where his little sister was but she was not in sight. He looked back down at Danceingfae who was giving a fierce scowl.

"She keeps trying to get me with her sticky arrows," she said, motioning at the arrow that was sticking to the wall above them. Leonardo recognized it as one of Daydream's; the tip was a glob of ultra sticky that Donnie had helped her make so she could have non-lethal arrows.

"Are you all fighting each other?" he asked, trying to get a grasp on the situation. "Shouldn't you all be against Machias if you're trying to help her train?"

"We were," Danceingfae said, "At first."

"Ah," Leonardo mumbled then looked over the pipes again, giving anyone watching a good view of him.

"I see you, Leo!" Daydream squealed and another arrow flew at Leonardo's head. He ducked back down and that one also stuck to the wall. He smirked.

"What?" Dance asked, not seeing what he was so smug about.

"She's over there," he replied, motioning towards an area slightly to their left. He had watched where the arrow had come from. "And she's up in the overhead piping, which isn't exactly the safest place to be." He got up into a crouch and unsheathed one of his katana which made Danceingfae's eyes widen. She grabbed his hand.

"Leo, you can't kill her, Dance said, shaking her head. "No matter that she's a pest."

"Stop being overdramatic," Leo said, slipping out from under her touch. "I'm just going to get her down. Where's Mikey, by the way?"

"He's down the tunnel a ways," she told him, waving her arm to the right. "Him and Machias were going at it on their skateboards. He called it board-dueling. Reiko's with them."

Leo looked down and shook his head. "Is everyone in this family determined to die early in life? I mean, I already have to worry about the Foot and the other street gangs and then Raph's always going off by himself and you girls are creating havoc at every point."

"You're such a worry wart," Danceingfae told him, giving him a smile.

"Haven't I got every right to be?" Leonardo replied, shaking his head as he quickly and stealthily headed off in the direction of Daydream.

Daydream was still crouched in her position, watching and waiting for Danceingfae to come into view again, so she could shoot her with a gooey arrow blob. She was completely unaware that her oldest brother was sneaking up on her with a plan of his own.

Leonardo reached Daydream and jabbed at her with the handle bit of his katana, before slicing the arrow she had prepared in half.

Daydream swatted at whatever annoying thing was now jabbing her, not realizing just who was jabbing at her. She gasped, eyes wide, when a katana came out of no where, destroying her beautiful arrow that she'd all prepared. "Heeey!" She whined. "I was gonna shoot that!"

"I know," Leonardo answered, reaching up and grabbing her down quickly. "Lunch is ready. Raph's in a foul mood, so you better get on inside, Ms. Ninja."

"Really? Yah think I'ma be a good ninja, Leo?" Daydream asked her eyes wide and hopeful.

"Sure," Leonardo nodded. "Once you learn a few more things about stealth and invisibility."

Daydream beamed and ran off for the lair. "Dance! Time to eat!" She hollered. "C'mon!"

Danceingfae stood up, crying out in surprise when she was hit with an arrow with a glob of goo on the end. "DAYDREAM!"

Daydream shrieked, and ran off into the lair to find safety.

"Thanks a lot, Leo!" Danceingfae shouted, following her sister inside.

Leonardo shook his head, as he went off in search of Michaelangelo, Machias, and Reiko.

Michaelangelo and Machias were busy battling it out, to see who was the best skateboarder in their clan. At the moment Machias was in the lead, and very proud of it. That was, until she had to swerve to miss hitting Leonardo.

"Leo!" She cried angrily, as she flipped off her board. "Dangit! I was gonna win!"

"Lunch," Leonardo answered. "And be careful! You two are going to kill yourselves doing this one of these days, I swear!"

Michaelangelo skidded to a halt on the other side of Leonardo. "Relax Leo," he chuckled. "It's not like you never did this when you were her age."

"Shut-up, Mikey," Leonardo groaned. "Now, c'mon. lunch is getting cold."

"It better not be pancakes again," Machias muttered. "Raph needs to learn how to cook more stuff."

"Nope," Leonardo smirked. "According to Arista, he had a run in with the stove and they got burnt."

Michaelangelo laughed. "Now, we better hurry back so I can make fun of him."

Leonardo shook his head. "You're just gonna get him more riled up, Mikey."

"Exactly," Michaelangelo smirked as they all headed back to the lair.

Back inside the lair, most everyone was already seated for lunch, all grateful that Arista had made a chicken salad. Raphael had burned the pancakes and his hand slightly as well, putting him in an extremely foul mood.

"Salad looks good," TygeroftheWynd complimented. "Bet the pancakes did too, 'till they got burnt."

Raphael shot her a dark look. "Watch it, Tyger."

Splinter ate with gusto, hoping to be done first, so she could pick what they watched on the television and not Lenni. She was sick of the crazy channel surfing her sister was doing.

Raphiella hugged Raphael carefully. "Don't worry, Raph. I'm sure they'll turn out fine next time."

Raphael shrugged her off slightly, after patting her hand secretly. "They'd damned well better turn out next time. Don't need this chicken feed."

HexAdecimal snickered. "This ain't chicken feed, yah sourpuss. If it was, we'd be eating it off the floor!"

"That _can_ be arranged!" Raphael growled.

Raphiella took her seat next to Raphael, and dug in as she was hungry. "It's good food though!"

Meanwhile, Donatello and Ziptango came out of his lab for lunch, only for Ziptango to be tackled by TMNTPunker.

"GOTCHA!" TMNTPunker yelled, as she tackled Ziptango to the ground. The two of them began to roll around, as TMNTPunker tried to beat her little sister up. "I'll teach you to 'antique' me!"

"GAHH! Donnie! HELP!" Ziptango shrieked, trying to block her sisters' blows as they rolled about.

Donatello stepped over them, then stuck his bo staff down between them. "C'mon. Sensei don't like for any of us to miss lunch, unless we've a very good reason. Rolling about on the floor beating each other up isn't a very good reason. And personally, I don't feel like patching anybody else up just yet, alright?"

TMNTPunker finally stopped pounding Ziptango and both girls got to their feet, just as Danceingfae and Daydream came in. "I GET THE BATHROOM!"

Donatello rolled his eyes as all four girls ran off for the bathroom to get cleaned up. He headed on to the kitchen, smirking when he saw the salad and not the pancakes he'd smelled earlier. "Cooking problems again, Raph?"

"Shaddup!" Raphael grumbled.

Lenni sat munching quietly on her salad, seeking her moment to leave. Finally, she figured it had come, when Splinter went to go get something to drink. She slid off her chair and quietly headed towards the door. She made it out of the dining area, and into the hall. She quickly averted her gaze around, then made a run for it. She'd just set foot outside the lair and had turned left, when she felt ah and clamp down upon her shoulder. She yelped, and turned to see just who had grabbed her.

"Going somewhere?" Leonardo asked, his gaze hard as he looked at her.

Lenore grumbled incoherently, muttering some cuss words under her breath.

Leonardo said nothing, as he abruptly turned her and guided her back into the lair that Michaelangelo and Machias had just gone into, with Reiko at their heels.

Lenore pouted as she shuffled along and was put back in her seat. She scowled even more when Leonardo sat down next to her, just as Splinter came back.

"You were s'pose to watch her, Splinter," Leonardo said.

"I did!" Splinter exclaimed. "But I got thirsty! I'm not her keeper, Leo!"

"No. That seems to be my job," Leonardo replied, smiling slightly. "One that I've a feeling I'm going to enjoy for a little while."

Lenore groaned, and went back to eating her salad, quietly devising her next escape.


	9. Studying & Sneaking Out

Disclaimer: We don't own the Ninja Turtles or each other. 'Cept Lenni owns Day and Zip and has for a while now, go figure.

* * *

After lunch it was time for school lessons, the guys' favorite time of the day. They could just stick the girls in their rooms with study books and have the lair to themselves for a while. Mikey had dubbed the time "Brother-Bonding Time", though none of the other guys called it that. Right none, the popular thing to do seemed to be fighting over the TV remote.

"This is more boring than anything else we do," complained Tyger, kicking her legs back and forth as she laid on her stomach.

She and the rest of the younger crew were all holed up in Mily and Lenni's room, having their own little illegal study group. The individual projects they were supposed to be doing were being conglomerated into one mega project. They would, of course, make it look like they were doing it separately.

"I haaate this stuff!" Lenni whined, flinging her science book away from her. "I don't get it!"

"It's really not that bad," Ziptango said as she picked up the book and put it on her knees. She was sitting on the floor with her shell to Lenni's bed. "You just gotta know the precipitation cycle."

"I'm not taking that test on Friday," Lenni said stubbornly, crossing her arms.

"What're you gonna do, smartie, fake sick or something?" Daydream asked from Mily's bed. She was sitting beside her pink-wearing sister, her math book open across her legs.

"That's a great idea!" Lenni exclaimed, suddenly enthusiastic. She bounced up and down on her bed, making Raphiella a little motion sick.

"No, it's not," Mily said, frowning at Daydream. "It's a BAD idea and you shouldn't do it."

"Stop that, or you'll pop your stitches," Tyger warned the still jumping Lenni and the younger turtle immediately sat down, fearful at the thought.

"Hey, what if what Lenni got was contagious?" Daydream asked with a brilliant grin. "Then we could all get sick, it'd be so great!" She did an excited little dance on the bed. "Then I wouldn't have to feed my homework to Reiko!"

"This'll never work," Tyger said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, you'd have to have a fever-" started Ziptango but Lenni cut her off.

"The lamp works great."

"Cold sweats-" put in Mily but Daydream shook her head.

"That's what hidden wet dishcloths are for."

"You'd have to puke to make Sensei happy," Raphiella mused, making a face.

"Mikey keeps fake throw up in one of his drawers," Lenni said with a grin. When the others looked at her, she just shrugged her shoulder. "What, can't a girl snoop around in her brother's stuff?"

They all giggled at the idea of Lenni going through Mike's things.

"C'mon, guys, we need to finish these history questions," said Tyger, pulling her sheet of questions closer. The others groaned but gave her their joined attention, knowing that Donnie would be expecting the answers by tomorrow.

* * *

"What do you think of my essay?" Arista asked as Hexadecimal looked up from reading it. The older girls, having learned the lesson of not cheating on work already, were studying separately. They often asked each other for help, though, and Arista had gotten Hex to read over her recent paper on Huckleberry Finn.

"It's a page long," Hex said, handing it back to her, "And most of that is babbling."

Arista sat down on the side of the bed and sighed. Reiko was in the room as well, sprawled out on Hex's floor. Arista rubbed his belly with her toes. "I just can't concentrate on this stuff right now."

"Don't get so worked up about the Trials," Hexadecimal said, shaking her head. She toyed with the ragged ends of her black bandanna. "It's not worth it. You now you can take them over, right?"

"I know, but it won't be the same if I fail," Arista said softly. "I can't fail."

"You won't," Hex reassured her. She stood up from her desk and frowned at her sister. "And stop saying that you will; it's silly to keep repeating it."

Arista smiled and looked up at Hex. "Yeah, I guess it is. I mean, I have been training really hard lately."

"You're always training hard, Leo Junior," teased Hex as she moved towards her dresser. She picked up her sai and put them in her belt as she started towards the door.

"Wait, where are you going?" Arista asked as Hex started to leave. The black-wearing turtle grinned back at her.

"We're going to go train some more, since you're freaking out so bad," she replied. She took her sister by the wrist and pulled her out of the room. "C'mon, Reiko!" The dog bounded after the two turtles, overjoyed just to be around people.

"But we're supposed to be studying!" Arista protested, pulling away from Hex. "And I need to rewrite my paper."

"Trust me, Donnie'll understand," said Hex. She sped up and didn't give Arista time to fight back anymore.

After the study period had ended, the girls all escaped from their rooms, unleashed on the lair once again. The guys, who were lounging about the living room, inwardly groaned as Raphiella, Punker, and Mily all came bounding in.

"Remote!" Punker said, holding out her hand for the controller. Mikey, who was in possession of the precious object, clung to it tighter and shook his head.

"How about you all go play Candy Land or somethin'?" suggested Raph, waving his hand at the pile of board games near the wall. Ella gave him a wry look.

"Yeah, and you can go play Pretty, Pretty Princess," she said and turned to Mikey. "You have to fork it over, it's rightfully ours now that school's over."

"Is there a rule book about this?" asked Donatello as Mily crawled onto the couch in-between him and Mikey. She grinned at him.

"It's called Master Splinter," she supplied. She glanced at the TV. "What're you guys watching, anyways?"

"Something good, unlike your shows," Raphael said, unwilling to let a moment to say something snarky pass by. The three girls made a face at him. Leonardo looked up from the essay that he was still working on.

"Where's Lenni?" he asked. He had told his youngest sister to either stay in her room or join the rest of them in the living room. He was keeping a close eye on her to make sure she wouldn't run off or do something too strenuous.

"In our room," said Mily but at the same time, Ella said,

"The kitchen." And simultaneously, Punker put in,

"Getting her skateboard."

Both Mily and Ella gave Punker a dark look for tattling straight up on Lenni. She rolled her eyes. "Hey, c'mon, she's going to hurt herself if somebody doesn't stop her."

"No she won't. Besides, Machias is with her," Ella said as if having Machias around while you were skating made you invincible.

"Seriously, suicidal, everyone's suicidal," Leonardo muttered to himself as he put his pencil down. He was never going to finish his essay at this rate!

Seeing his brother's growing frustrations, Mikey jumped up from his spot of the couch. "Dude, don't worry about it, I'll go get her."

"You sure about that, Mikey?" Leonardo asked, but he was relieved. Mikey could handle her better, anyways.

Mikey nodded and gave Leo a big grin. "I'm her favorite brother, remember?"

Raphiella rolled her eyes as she reached over to pick up a handful of popcorn from the table. "Mikey, we haven't declared favorite since we were ten. It's not fair to you guys," she said, looking at her four brothers.

"But we can still tell," Donatello said, leaning back farther into the couch. Raphael nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, you girls ain't so hard to read," he said with a smirk.

"Hush, I'm trying to watch this stupid show you were watching!" scolded Punker, throwing a decent scowl at Raphael. He glared back at her.

"Well, I'll go get Lenni, you just finish whatever that mess is your working on," Mikey told Leo who automatically took an indignant stance.

"It's not a mess!"

Michaelangelo snorted. "Tell that to the paper."

Leonardo scowled, causing the girls in the room to giggle.

"He's pulling a Raph!" Mily exclaimed.

TMNTPunker smirked. "I c'n do a better one."

"Yup, we know yah can," Raphiella giggled, as TMNTPunker shot her sister a glare. "See? Told yah!"

Michaelangelo shook his head and quickly left the room to go rescue the youngest from herself, and her half-brained schemes. He knew he'd better find her quick, before she popped stitches or hurt her still bruised ribs even more. He stepped outside the lair and walked to where they'd marked off a designated area for skateboarding, he heard the girls long before he ever got there.

"Whoot!" Lenore cried, moving her skateboard fast and skillfully. "I'ma be a professional boarder when I'm older!"

"An' how yah gonna do that" Machias asked, with an indignant air. "Not like yah can exactly just walk up top and go 'Hey, I'm a mutant turtle boarder'. I mean, look what 'em punks did to yah already an' yah weren't even trying to board."

Lenore frowned, pausing long enough to look at her sister. "Sensei says we c'n be whatever we wanna be."

"Yeah. Long as it's ninja related," Machias pointed out. "We gotta be ninja, Lenni. We don't got a choice, 'cause of what we are."

"An' what are we?" Lenore asked, looking and sounding confused.

"Mutant turtles," Machias shrugged.

"So what's wrong with that?" Lenore demanded, starting to get a little angry.

"Why don'tcha go ask 'em punks who beat yah what's so wrong with it?" Machias countered.

Lenore frowned some. "Is everybody like that, Match?"

Machias shot her a glare at the use of the unwanted nickname, but shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe, maybe not. Donnie says there's some people who're nice an' would accept us, but most would probably be scared 'cause we don't look like 'em. He said they'd be afraid of their own shadows, if the shadows weren't attached to 'em in the first place."

"But that's dumb," Lenore argued. "We're not gonna hurt anybody! They keep hurtin' us an' callin' us freaks! _They're_ the freaks!"

"No point in stressin' over it," Machias told her. "Yah do, an' you'll end up like Raph – cold an' bitter."

"He's not that bad," Lenore said softly, wanting to defend her brother in red. "He's just angry 'cause he knows too much."

Machias laughed. "No. That'd be Leo. Leo knows too much an' always has."

Lenore rolled her eyes, as she began to skateboard once more. "Leo does know too much. Bet he's probably lookin' for me right now too, 'less I finally out-smarted him."

"Ha! That'll never happen!" Machias laughed, as she caught up to the youngest of the clan. "An' I just hope they don't tell him I'm lettin' yah do this. He'll skin me alive!"

"We're already skinned," Lenore giggled. "'Cept fer the hair on our heads, if we got lucky 'nough to get some."

Michaelangelo sighed as he watched them, having had heard the whole conversation. He hated to see Lenore's bubble of dreams burst, but it was the truth. Not everybody would accept them.

"Hey, Match? Do yah think Brian an' 'em would accept me?"

"Pfft," Machias scoffed. "I doubt it."

"But they greet _every_body!" Lenore argued. "It wouldn't hurt to try."

"It would if Sensei found out," Machias replied, doing a flip on her board. "An' how yah gonna meet 'em when they got all that security an' a zillion fans around 'em anyway, huh?"

Lenore shrugged dejectedly, attempting to do a flip, landing wrong and falling off her board. "Oww!" She whined, clutching her chest some. "I forgot I got bruised ribs."

Michaelangelo decided to step in then, and flipped her skateboard up into his hand. "You also forgot you got brothers who notice everything."

Lenore groaned. "Mikey," she whined. "I was usin' that."

"Not anymore you're not," Michaelangelo replied. "Now, c'mon, get up. We gotta get you back before Sensei realizes you're gone or Leo thinks I'm lettin' yah do whatcha want an' comes lookin'."

"But Mikey!" Lenore whined once more. "I'm bo-ored! There's _nothin'_ to do! Leo won't lemme get up off the couch or outta bed! I can only stay still for so long!"

Michaelangelo helped her up. "Don't make me hafta get Leo to swat you, Lenni. He believes you to be past that stage, but you're not doin' much to prove him wrong."

Lenore pouted, glancing over at her sister. "Thanks for tryin' Match."

"Call me Match again an' I'm tacklin' yah, bruised ribs and stitches or not," Machias warned.

Lenore grumbled, and with her head hung and shoulders slouched, she made her way back to the lair with her brother in orange right behind her to ensure she didn't try to run off again.

"Heya Lenni!" Daydream chirped, as she was sitting on the floor playing cards with Ziptango and TygeroftheWynd. "Yah have fun skateboardin'?"

"Did 'till Mikey found me," Lenore mumbled, as she was led to the infirmary for Donatello to check her over once more.

TygeroftheWynd shook her head. "When's she gonna learn they're always gonna find her an' bring her back?"

"When she's old as Sensei," Ziptango snickered, only to hear someone clear their throat, causing her sisters to giggle. She turned and looked up sheepishly. "Heh. Hi, Sensei."

Master Splinter shook his head. "Kids," he said, before retreating to his favourite chair to watch some television with his students.

Danceingfae poked her head out of the kitchen then. "Everybody stay outta here! Splinter an' I are gonna be workin' on a project, so we don't need y'all interruptin'."

Everybody waved her off, not caring what they were up to in the kitchen, so long as nothing happened to their food or furniture.

Danceingfae shrugged and popped back into the kitchen. "Let's get to work on our volcano, Splinter!"

Splinter smiled deviously. "Yes, let's. They'll never know what hit 'em!"

Both girls laughed. They were building a volcano for a science project, as Donatello had been telling them about combustible components.

Leonardo looked up from his paper suddenly. "Mikey brought Lenni back, right?"

Before anybody had a chance to answer, they heard yelling coming from the infirmary.

"NO! YOU'RE _NOT_ STICKIN' ME AGAIN! GO AWAY! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

"LENNI, HOLD STILL! I TOLD YOU TO TAKE IT EASY!"

"NO! LEO!"

Leonardo groaned. "I just had to ask, didn't I?"

The girls in the room all giggled, as Machias came in and ran into the kitchen, having had suddenly remember she was supposed to help with the volcano.

"Leo!" Michaelangelo's voice rang out. "Lenni won't let Donnie stick her 'less you're here to hold her hand!"

"_Mikey_!" Lenore's voice rang out. "_Don't tell him that!_"

Leonardo stood up shaking his head. "I'ma have Donnie tie her to her bed or Michaelangelo's hip, so she can't take off anymore. Otherwise, she's gonna give _all_ of us gray hair."

Everyone snickered, as Leonardo headed off towards the infirmary.

"An' here I thought she didn't like, Leo," Raphael commented. "Girl's been keepin' secrets again, hasn't she?"

"Yup," Mily piped up, blushing when she noticed everyone turn to stare at her. "What? We share a room. You hear things that are being said to a Teddy Bear, when thought that everybody else is asleep."

"Sure, sure," Daydream teased.

Ziptango nudged Daydream. "Like you don't know anything either."

Daydream just flashed them all a grin, as Lenore's cries rang out from the infirmary as she was re-stuck and stitched up once more.

Master Splinter shook his head, knowing it was going to be a _long_ day if his daughters had anything to do with it.

A short while later, Leonardo returned to his spot to resume writing his biased essay on katanas, as Donatello had finished patching Lenore up. Moments afterwards, Michaelangelo came out carrying the youngest turtle, headed for her room. Donatello was right behind him, carrying a small T.V. and a VCR he had rigged up. They disappeared into her and Mily's room, only Donatello emerging a short while later.

Everyone raised their eye ridges at him, wondering just how he'd planned on getting Lenore to stay put.

"Yah finally tie her down, Don?" Leonardo asked, as Raphael snorted.

Donatello shook his head. "Nope. Mikey promised her a Backstreet Boys marathon, so I hooked up the small T.V. and VCR in her room for her. Not only does she get her videos, but she gets her favourite brother as well."

The girls all groaned and rolled their eyes at the 'favourite brother' mention again, starting to wish they'd never declared favourites ever in the first place – their brothers were _never_ going to let them live that down.

"We shall all relax until next practice," Master Splinter stated. He'd just finished speaking, when there was a loud explosion coming from the kitchen, followed by what looked like lava coming out into the hall.


	10. In Trouble

Disclaimer: We don't own the Ninja Turtles!

* * *

Leo jumped up at the sound of the explosion and made a beeline for the kitchen, yelling to see who had caused the explosion. Master Splinter sighed and bowed his head before silently following his son down the hallway.

"I didn't do it!" Daydream immediately said, putting her hands into the air to show her innocence. Raph rolled his eyes at her as he stood up from his chair.

"You're not even in the kitchen, runt," he said, tapping her on the leg with his foot as he passed by. She stuck her tongue out at his shell as he went down the hallway.

"Your tongue goes in your mouth, Daydream," Donnie chided and she reluctantly closed her mouth. The purple-wearing turtle followed Raphael into the kitchen where smoke had filled the room. It had an acrid stench to it, like mixed up chemicals and he groaned a bit, automatically knowing that this was the twisted offspring of one of his science lessons. He stepped carefully around the red/orange lava goo that was all over the floor.

"You put too much in there!" Splinter was shouting at Danceingfae. They were both covered in the lava, which was luckily not hot or anything. They looked like mini-muck monsters though.

"Hey, you were the one that said, 'let's add some more,' not me!" retorted Danceingfae.

"I do not care whose fault this is," said Master Splinter, his tail raised to keep it out of the lava goo. "I want the both of you to clean this kitchen until it is spotless and then come to my study. I will not tolerate explosions like this." His eyes darted towards Donatello who was also known for blowing things up. The older turtle blushed with embarrassment and Master Splinter, "Do you understand?"

"Hai, Sensei," Dance and Splinter both mumbled, looking anywhere but their father's eyes. The venerable head of the household left and the two girls started bickering again, since only their brothers were there.

"You're such a doofus!" exclaimed Splinter as she grabbed a dish cloth from the stove. Raphael and Leo shared a look when she popped Dance in the arm with it and then started cleaning.

"Remind you of us at their age?" Leo muttered to Raph who chuckled, giving a small nod.

"Just a bit."

"Don't call me names, Splinter," said Dance, frowning at her sister. She picked up another dish cloth and hit Splinter with it subtlety.

"How about the two of you don't hit each other?" Donatello suggested. He made a face and leaned against the fried. "And stop using my lessons for your terrorist plans?"

"Don't kid yourself, Donnie," Raphael said, throwing his brother a smirk before leaving the kitchen. His voice came back to tease Donatello, "It's not like they need your help."

Donnie sighed and looked at the girls again. "You can explain what exactly went wrong later. In essay format," he said, a smirk coming on to his face.

"No fair!" cried Dance and Splinter but Donnie was already gone, leaving them alone with Leo.

"What you're going to punish us too?" Dance asked, fed up with what was probably going to be double punishment from both Donnie and Master Splinter. They had not meant to blow anything up, it was an accident. Leo shook his head.

"No, but I'll help you clean up."

"Really?" Splinter asked. She leaned away from him. "Have you become a nice, helpful pod person or something?"

Leo looked confused as he picked the mop up from its spot near the fridge. "A pod person?"

Danceingfae laughed as she swiped her cloth across the table. "Splinter, Leo doesn't follow pop culture like the rest of us."

"Oh, yeah," mumbled Splinter. She pulled off her lava-covered bandanna and put it in the sink. "Wanna wash yours too, Dance?" she asked, motioning towards Dance's also discolored bandanna. The older girl nodded and pulled it off.

"I can barely tell you two apart now," Leo said jokingly as Splinter ran water over the bandannas, rinsing the lava off of them. Dance laughed.

"Here's a hint," she said, a smug look on her face, "Splinter's the ugly one."

"Dance!" Splinter shouted, half-shocked that that had just come out of her normally nice sister's mouth. She hit her with the dish cloth again, which created a dish cloth war between the two of them. Leo let it go on for a little while until the little hits became the nasty stinging one. He made a barrier between the two by sticking the mop between them.

"That's enough, or I will have to punish you two."

"There's the Leo we know and love," Dance said sarcastically, still frowning at Splinter.

"Yeah, now we know you're not a pod person," Splinter added with a nod. Leo put the mop to the side.

"Explain this pod person thing…"

* * *

Lenni and Michelangelo were in her room, chilling out and watching Backstreet Boys. Mikey was only doing this out of love for his sister, seeing as he wasn't exactly a fan of the boy singing group, but it made Lenni happy and that was what mattered. Later, he could go wash his ear drums out with something good, like Led Zeppelin or Rolling Stones or something.

"Brian's cute for a human guy, isn't he Mikey?" Lenni asked, scooting back on her mattress. Mikey made a face.

"Well, um, being a turtle, and a guy, I don't think I've got the proper credentials to have an opinion on that, Lenni," he said, shaking his head back and forth.

Lenni shrugged. "Well, I think he's cute. He sings really good!"

Mikey laughed and nodded, "Yeah, I'll give him that, he's a good singer."

"He's the best in the world!" exclaimed Lenni, stretching her arms out with excitement.

"Your world, maybe," said Mikey, rolling his eyes.

"Hey!" Lenni said, "He is the best."

Mikey tickled her in the side, not wanting to hear more of her proclamations of Brian's greatness but not wanting to squash her obsession either. She giggled and batted at his hand. Klunk, who had came into the room earlier, jumped up on the bed and curled up next to Lenni.

"He's such a nice cat," Lenni said, petting his soft orange fur. "Where did you find him again, Mikey?"

""In an alley over near the docks," he said, happy to tell a story and not watch the marathon. "I was just walking around, minding my own business-"

'Cause you were in trouble with Raphael," put in Lenni, her memory sharp. Mikey rubbed the back of his neck.

"Yeah, well, he was trying to kill me just for putting bugs in his cereal," Mikey said, shaking his head, "They're protein."

"Go on with the story," Lenni urged, not wanting to hear about icky bugs and stuff. She hated them almost as much as Raphael hated them. Mikey grinned.

"Anyways, so I was down at the docks, minding my own business when I hear this mewing noise."

"I love this part," said Lenni, interrupting again.

Mikey smiled, enjoying having her full attention. "Now, I didn't know much about kittens but I was pretty sure that it was a baby something or other. The noises were coming from one of the trash cans so I went over there to check it out."

"And you found Klunk in there!" added Lenni. She knew the story by heart. Mikey nodded and patted the cat.

"Yep! He was hiding under an empty ice cream bucket, but I saw him anyways. He was so cute but I didn't know if Sensei would let me keep him."

"Klunk was all skinny, too, and he didn't have anyone to take care of him, did he?" asked Lenni. She picked up the cat and pulled him into her lap. Klunk purred, loving the attention. Mikey nodded and ran his finger over the cat's small head.

"Yep," said Mikey. "So I couldn't just leave him there! I put him in my trench coat pocket and brought him home."

"And hid him in your room for a week!"

Michaelangelo nodded, chuckling some. "Yup, I did. Sensei wasn't too happy when he found out, but he let me keep him anyway, since I was taking such good care of him."

Lenore giggled, as she snuggled back into her brother, still petting Klunk. "You think Klunk likes Backstreet Boys?"

Michaelangelo groaned playfully, hoping she hadn't brainwashed his cat into being a fan of the group still singing away on the television.

* * *

"C'mon Arista!" HexAdecimal groaned. "You gotta do the kata better than _that_!"

Arista grumbled, as she did her best to do her kata. "I'm _trying_ my best!"

"Well, it's _not_ good enough! Sense will flunk yah right now for this if he was here," HexAdecimal told her sister. "You gotta be quicker, swifter, an' not all jerky an' slow like."

"I'm _never_ gonna be able to do this!" Arista wailed, stopping mid-kata. "I've been practicing this one for a _month_! An' I'm _still_ not getting' any better!"

"Maybe you need Leo's help," HexAdecimal said. "He's best at these things."

"No," Arista replied stubbornly. "I wanna surprise him, an' show him I can do this on my own – without his help."

"You're not doin' it alone, if yah got my help," HexAdecimal pointed out.

"I am, so long as Leo's not the one helping," Arista answered, giving out a frustrated cry as she went to start again and tripped over her own two feet.

"Maybe we need a break," HexAdecimal suggested. "Maybe if yah start fresh, it'll work better. We have been practicing for a while now."

"No. I'm _going_ to do this Hex!" Arista argued. "I'm _not_ taking a break!"

"A good ninja knows when to rest and when to continue. It's not giving up, but having balance," HexAdecimal stated. "Remember that, an' you'll do fine."

"Fine, I'll take a break," Arista sighed, going to her sister's side. "Wanna race?"

HexAdecimal shrugged. "Sure, we could, I guess. But let's make it an obstacle course!"

"Okay!" Arista agreed, the two girls then deciding on what they'd have to do for their obstacle race.

* * *

Raphiella, Mily, and TMNTPunker had switched the television to the O.C. by now, seeing as their brothers had all up and left them with the remote control. They were busy watching their show, hoping for no interruptions at all.

"I love this show," TMNTPunker said with a loving sigh. "It's so great."

"Yeah," Mily agreed, nodding her head. "It's wonderful."

"Fantastic!" Raphiella piped up, trying to outdo her sisters compliment wise.

"Outstanding," TMNTPunker declared.

"Extraordinary!" Mily chirped.

"Amazing!" Raphiella stated.

The three girls giggled, as the commercial break ended and they all shushed once more, so as to be able to hear what was being said.

Behind the couch, Daydream, TygeroftheWynd, and Ziptango still sat playing cards. They were playing war with two decks of cards, so that it would take them much longer to play than usual.

"So who do yah think is gonna pass the Trials? TygeroftheWynd asked.

"Arista, mini Leo," Ziptango answered, as Daydream said, "Machias."

TygeroftheWynd smirked "I think Machias. Arista's too worked up about 'em to stay focused well enough."

"But Machias ain't even practicing!" Ziptango argued.

"That we've seen," TygeroftheWynd replied.

"Maybe she's makin' herself invisible an' practicin' when we all can't see her!" Daydream piped up, prompting strange looks from her sister. "What? She could be!"

TygeroftheWynd and Ziptango both shook their heads. "You wish, Day. We all know your fascination with being invisible."

"X-men can do it, so why can't we?" Daydream counted. "I mean, Sensei might as well be invisible some days. He sneaks up on us all the time."

"Because he's a ninja master, silly," Ziptango told her. "But if yah ever do figure out how to be invisible, lemme know. I'd like to give it a try."

"Me too," TygeroftheWynd agreed. "It sounds like fun."

* * *

Machias, who'd gone to the bathroom, had heard Master Splinter tell Danceingfae and Splinter off for making the volcano explode; she'd also heard Donatello give them an essay, so she'd decided it was best to stay hidden and far away until further notice. She did _not_ want to be included in the punishments, especially since she'd been no where near the volcano when it'd exploded, erupting its lava all over the kitchen and out into the hall. So, why bother say she'd helped build it now? Besides, it seemed her sister had forgotten she'd helped them anyway, so why risk it? She shrugged and left the lair once more, to go off skateboarding again, only this time by herself.

"Better them than me," she thought. "Why should I get in trouble, when I didn't make it explode? Them two goons did. They shoulda asked Donnie for help, so they wouldn't be in this mess – literally."

Master Splinter secretly watched her leave, having had known all along she'd been in the kitchen with them, to help build the volcano. But, he decided to give her a chance to fess up to that part on her own – if she did, she wouldn't be in trouble for the explosion. But, if she avoided telling him she'd helped out in anyway, then he'd be forced to bring the truth out of her. An honorable ninja would tell the truth and face the consequences, which would be none if she'd come clean. He'd give her until bed, but after that, he'd wait no more. She should've realized someone in their large family had to have seen her go into the kitchen anyway – and this time, it just happened to be him. But for now, he'd leave her to her skateboarding.

"Hey, where'd Machias disappear too?" Splinter suddenly wondered aloud, as her Danceingfae, and Leonardo cleaned up the mess in the kitchen still. "She said she was goin' to the bathroom. What she do, fall in?"

"Probably," Danceingfae muttered. "That or she heard everything and decided to bail."

"Well, that's not right," Splinter frowned. "She helped make the volcano. Why should we hafta clean it all up? She helped picked out the stuff for the lava too."

Leonardo listened to them complain briefly, then spoke up, "Maybe since she didn't make it explode, she decided to hightail it and get out of helping clean up. Though, I can't say I blame her. This stuff is sticky and just gross. What'd you use for it anyway?"

The two girls smirked at one another then. "We'll never tell."

"You're going to have to in that essay Donnie want you to write," Leonardo pointed out.

"No we won't," Splinter replied. "All we hafta say is that we mixed chemicals an' poured too much of one in an' BAM! It exploded way more than it should've."

Leonardo rolled his eyes. "You know he'll never accept that. He likes for things to be technical."

"Well, technical he ain't gonna get," Danceingfae snapped. "It's his fault anyway! He showed us how to mix chemicals and said it'd make for great lava! So why isn't he in here helping us clean up, huh? And why isn't he in any trouble for not telling use to steer clear of them outside of our school lessons?"

"Yeah!" Splinter agreed, tossing her rag onto the kitchen table. "I say we go get him an' drag his sorry excuse of a shell back here! He's no right to bail! We should go find Machias too!"

Danceingfae tossed her cloth down as well. "Agreed."

"Girls, Sensei won't be happy if he comes in here to find a mess and both of you gone," Leonardo stressed.

"He's not happy anyway, so what's the point?" Splinter countered. "I mean, we _could_ use more help anyway."

Leonardo shook his head. "Fine, but until you get back, you're on your own."

"Sweet!" Both girls exclaimed, quickly running off. Splinter took off to find Machias, and Danceingfae went off in search of Donatello.

Splinter found Machias off skateboarding, like usual. "Hey! Match!"

"_Don't_ you call me that!" Machias growled, whirling about.

Splinter rolled her eyes. "Why did yah run off? You're s'pose to help us clean up!"

"Sensei, _never_ said _I_ had to do anything!" Machias argued. "An' y'all we're s'pose to wait on me, 'fore yah blew it up! But now, I'm _glad_ I wasn't there when yah did it!"

"I'll tell Sensei you helped build it! Then you'll be in trouble for knowing about it!" Splinter threatened.

"You're not right, yanno that Splint?" Machias grumbled, grabbing her skateboard up and heading back towards the lair.

"It's the only way to be," Splinter replied smirking.

Meanwhile, Danceingfae was trying to con Donatello into helping them clean up. So far, she wasn't having very much luck.

"But it's _your_ fault, Donnie!" Danceingfae argued. "_You_ told us about combustible components and _never_ said we couldn't test 'em out on a volcano!"

"I thought you girls had more common sense than that!" Donatello replied somewhat calm, as he was beginning to become annoyed.

"Obviously not!" Danceingfae shouted at her older brother. "Leo didn't even give us the idea and _he's_ helping!"

"Well, guess Leo's perfect then, huh?"

"Argh! _Quit_ acting like Raphael and _get_ in there to help!" Danceingfae ordered, moving to shove her brother towards the door. "_Now_!"

Donatello frowned, stepping aside and letting her fall to the floor. "Would you like to have to write a longer essay, Dance? Because I'm _not_ in the mood to have you trying to boss me around."

"Yanno what? You're just a big ole mean jerk!" Danceingfae told him. "We didn't _mean_ for it to blow up, alright? _Not_ that much, anyway. And all you can do is sit on your high horse 'cause you're the brains of this family, who apparently has never blown anything up before! News flash Donatello! You _have_ blown stuff up! Plenty of times! And yet you _never_ got in this much trouble! Least, I don't think so…"

Donatello frowned. "I always got in trouble, Dance," he told her. "I even blew up something that Sensei loved dearly once by mistake. But I was supposed to know how to be more careful." He sighed, pausing a moment. "Alright, let's go clean this mess of yours up. But I'm still expecting an essay."

Danceingfae hugged him tightly. "I knew I could count on you."

Donatello shook his head. "Grab me a mop. I'll be a knight in a slightly tarnished shell."

Danceingfae giggled, running off in search of another mop for her purple-clad brother. "Donnie's gonna help!" She called out to Leonardo, as well as Splinter and Machias who had just now returned.

* * *

Back in Lenore's room, Michaelangelo and her were still watching her Backstreet marathon. She _loved_ to watch them with a passion – now, if only she had such a passion for ninjitsu, then all would be well.

"I'ma go grab a snack, you want anything?" Michaelangelo asked her, as he carefully and skillfully got off the bed without disturbing her _too_ much.

Lenore pouted at the loss of her pillow. "Chocolate's good," she smiled finally. "Chocoholic needs her chocolate!"

"Always," Michaelangelo smiled. He stretched some. "Anything to drink?"

"Mountain Dew!" Lenore chirped. "It's Nick Carter's favourite!"

Michaelangelo rolled his eyes at her, not even going to ask just _how_ much she actually knew about the group members she loved so dearly. "And if we don't have any?"

"Iced tea, Brian's favourite," Lenore replied, waving for him to shut-up, as her favourite song came on. "Shh!"

Michaelangelo kissed her head quickly then left the room to go grab them some snacks and take a very much needed break.

"Hey, Mikey, is the marathon over already?" Raphael asked, as he headed towards the bathroom. "Or did she finally pass out?"

Michaelangelo shook his head. "I came to get snacks. You can't have a marathon without them."

Raphael chuckled. "I'm surprised she didn't send yah off to find a Backstreet Boy instead."

"Don't go givin' her any ideas, Raph," Michaelangelo told him. "She's always trying to become a professional skateboarder."

"More heart-attacks and gray hairs for Leo," Raphael laughed, going into the bathroom as Michaelangelo continued on down the hall.

Lenore had waited a few minutes to ensure her brother gone, before climbing up out of bed. She _loved_ watching her videos, but she missed being able to play games with her sisters. And no matter how much she hurt or how much she hated that dratted needle and thread, she was determined to go and play out in the sewers. She cautiously made her way to the door and looked around before daring to venture outside of her room.

A figure unknown to her stood watching, waiting for the right moment to startle the young turtle.

"And just _where_ do you think _you're_ going?" a voice demanded.

Lenore just about jumped three feet in the air as she turned to stare up at her brother. "Um...bathroom?"

"Nice try, but it's _that_ way," the un-amused turtle replied, pointing back in the other direction.

"I was coming to help?" Lenore tried.

Again the older turtle shook his head. "You're not very appreciative, are you? We _try_ to be nice to you. We _let_ you watch what you want when we can. Donnie even set up that Backstreet marathon you got going on, and yet, _this_ is how you repay us, by _trying_ to sneak out and failing yet again."

"But Mikey…" Lenore whined somewhat. "I wanna – "

Michaelangelo cut her off. "I'm beginning to think you don't deserve to watch your marathon. Heck, maybe I should just let you watch it by yourself. I'm trying to be a nice guy and keep you occupied, and yet, you don't seem to care that I'm watching it with you because I care. All you seem to be thinking about it yourself, and how much _you_ want to go and do things you've been told not to do until you've healed better. The Raph mode _isn't_ as cute as it once was, Lenore."

Lenore's eyes widened as her brother _never_ called her by her full name unless he was angry with her. "But – But I thought it was a game! Leo was playin'!"

"Then play it when Leo's in the mood to play and is the one watching over you," Michaelangelo told her. "Now, get back to bed. I got our snacks."

"You're – You're gonna stay?" Lenore checked.

"No, I'm going in there to watch them by myself," Michaelangelo replied rolling his eyes. "Just stay in bed, Lenni. Or I _will_ leave you to watch them alone."

Lenore hung her head, feeling bad now. "I'm sorry, Mikey," she said softly, trying not to cry.

"Hey, hey, no tears," Michaelangelo told her. "Sensei sees 'em an' I'ma be stuck doing ten flips instead of watching Brian and them other guys with yah."

Lenore nodded slightly, wiping her eyes with her hand. "Kay."

Michaelangelo crouched down, his back to her slightly. "C'mon. Hop on."

Lenore gave a small smile as she hopped up onto her brother's shell carefully. "I love you, Mikey."

"Yeah, yeah, I love you too Munchkin," Michaelangelo replied with a small chuckle. He carried her back to her bed and got them both settled once more to continue watching her videos.


	11. Special Splendiferous Artistic Day

Disclaimer: Lenni and Day don't own the Ninja Turtles or our buddies.

By Thursday, Master Splinter still had not called off their probation so Michelangelo decided to spice life up a bit. He had designated to day as Special Splendiferous Artistic Day at the lair.

Sneaking out of his room, Mikey bent down and plugged his boom box into the wall. The lights were still off and everyone was asleep, snuggled down in their blankets. Quickly finding the song he wanted, Mikey found the track on the CD that he waned to play and spun the volume dial up to maximum.

The Six Flags theme song blared out from the speakers, "_We like to party, we like, we like to party!_" and immediately Mikey started to hear annoyed exclamations from behind the closed doors.

"Wake up!" Mikey shouted over the music, walking down the hallway were their bedrooms were. He banged his nunchucks against the doors of his little sisters' rooms, beating out good-morning rhythms. "C'mon, up and at 'em turtles!"

"Turn it down!" shouted Arista. Her pillow made a loud thunk against the door and Reiko started barking. "I mean it!"

"Knock it off, Mikey," Hexadecimal said as she opened the door to her room. She glared at her cheerful older brother with tired eyes. "The rest of this family is trying to sleep."

"I know, but that's not the plan for today," replied Mikey. He flung open the door to Machias' room and let out a piercing whistle. "Party time, Match!"

"Ahhhh!" Machias screamed as she was startled into awakening. She fumbled to grab the ninjato at her bedside, thinking this might be the start of the Trials or something. As she unsheathed the blade wildly, Mikey let out a yelp and closed the door again. Figuring out that it was just Michelangelo, Machias groaned and flopped back down on her bed.

"Somebody kill him," mumbled Splinter as she walked out of her room, rubbing at her eyes. She had gotten up anyways, knowing that Mikey would just be annoying until they obeyed his wishes.

"My pleasure," Raphael snarled as he appeared in his doorway, a sai in his clenched fist.

Michelangelo ignored them and continued to beat on the doors. He started singing along with the Six Flags Theme, occasionally making up his own lyrics.

"'_Cause everybody's jumping, this place is really hopping! From New York to San Francisco, we can all do disco_!"

Raphael had retreated back into his room the moment Mikey started singing. Hexadecimal gave a frustrated scream and slammed her door while Splinter just walked towards the kitchen to get some breakfast.

"We can't all do disco, Mikey," Donatello said, leaning against the doorway of his room.

"But then I'd have to switch the song around," Mikey complained as he threw open the door to Lenni and Mily's room.

"Get up!" he shouted, walking in and standing in the middle of the room. Both of them sat up and stared at him, not really sure of what to do.

"What you doing?" Mily finally mumbled sleepily, reaching for her pink bandanna. She thought it was Mikey but seeing the time on the clock, she was beginning to think it was Leo on a sugar rush.

"Waking everyone up!" Mikey replied as if she should have already known.

"Oh," said Mily. She threw her blanket over her head, trying to ignore him. He picked up a stuffed animal from the floor and flung it at Lenni's head. "C'mon, Lenni, wake up."

"Leave me alone…" growled Lenni, pulling her pillow over her head. Not deterred in the least, Michelangelo grabbed her shell and began to bounce her up and down, using the springy mattress to his advantage.

"No can do, short stuff. I have plans for today, it's gonna be fun, now get up!" he announced. He beat his hands gently against her shell and she sat up, yelling indignantly. Laughing, Mikey ran out of the room.

"You're supposed to be nice to me!" Lenni yelled after him.

Leonardo, who had already been awake before Mikey had started his early morning rampage, appeared at the end of hallway, giving his little brother a suspicious look. Mikey hated waking up early and did not like to inflict the torture of it on others. That was Leo's job. Oh, well, thought Leo as he sipped on his coffee and returned to the kitchen, at least the pillows and such would not be hurled at him.

Mikey skipped through the hallway as his younger siblings left their rooms, bewildered and quite annoyed with how happy he was when they were miserable. Most of them glared at him before continuing on to the kitchen for breakfast; Hexadecimal made a point of hitting him.

It was Raphiella and Donatello's turn to fix breakfast but they decided to neglect cooking and just set out a bunch of cereal boxes and the milk. If the others wanted something hot, they knew how to work the oven and the microwave.

When Master Splinter came to the table, he was surprised to find all sixteen of his children sitting around the table, most of them scowling at Michelangelo. Reiko and Klunk were no where to be seen; they had probably hidden themselves somewhere else in the lair after the wake-up call. Danceingfae was nearly asleep in her chair, having stayed up late writing her essay for Donnie. She lazily pushed her spoon around in her Cheerios.

"Good morning, my children," Master Splinter said as he took his seat at the head of the table.

They all returned mumbled responses, none of them which contained the word 'good' except for Michelangelo's.

"Good morning, Master Splinter!" he exclaimed brightly, grinning over his bowl of Captain Crunch. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, I did, Michelangelo," Master Splinter answered slowly, giving his youngest son a curious look. He certainly was more alert than the rest of his siblings.

"Mikey woke us up too early!" Lenni accused suddenly, pointing her spoon at her orange-wearing brother.

"Yeah, Sensei, he woke us up before Leo wakes us up," added Tyger, scowling at Michelangelo. Mikey shrugged.

"I was excited," he replied, still beaming. Their bad moods could not even dim his glowing happiness. "You guys will be too when I tell you."

"What, the probation's off?" Raphael asked, slamming his spoon into the bottom of his bowl. He scowled at Michelangelo. "If that's your big news…"

"It's not!" Mikey said, shaking his head.

"Then what is it?" asked Daydream, catching her brothers excitement. She was a morning person after she woke up.

Michelangelo stood up and cleared his throat, preparing to make an official important announcement.

"Today is going to be Special Splendiferous Artistic Day! WOOO!" Mikey pumped a fist in the air and waited for the rest of them to join him in cheering.

They all stared at him over their cereal bowls.

"Okay," Leo said unenthusiastically, returning to eating his Cheerios. The girls looked a little more interested while Donnie and Raph just shared an exasperated look.

"What does that mean, exactly?" asked Arista, putting her spoon in her empty bowl. She was a fast eater.

"We're going to paint the lair and, I dunno, write poetry and stories and dance and just whatever artistic thing you want to do!" Michelangelo explained, still pumped about the whole thing.

Around the table, the girls were starting to really like the idea. This would be a good change of pace for all of them and, besides, it'd be great just to play around with painting and stories and all that sort of stuff.

"Are we going to paint our rooms?" Mily asked. She already liked the way she and Lenni had their room.

"Not if you don't wanna," said Mikey, "We're going to paint the hallways and the walls and everything."

"No ponies or rainbows!" Raphael broke in, pointing at all of the girls. "I swear, no gushy girlie things."

"Oh, hush, Raphael, we can paint whatever we want and you can paint whatever you want," Punker said, sticking her tongue out at her brother.

"I'll be painting over your pony first," said Raphael, standing up and picking up his bowl. Ella frowned as he walked away to put his bowl in the kitchen sink.

"I will not paint ponies!" she called after him.

"What about practice?" Arista asked, looking over at Master Splinter.

He nodded to Master Splinter. "I talked to Sensei about it last night and he said it's a good idea. There won't be school today and we'll only have one practice!"

There was a loud cheer at that announcement. Lenni was especially loud, yelling exuberantly at the top of her lungs.

Arista and Machias looked at each other. They couldn't afford to cut back on practicing right now. Leo noticed their glance and leaned over to Arista who was on his right.

"I'm certain you could artistically practice, if you liked," said Leonardo in a whisper and he winked at Arista. She smiled at him, knowing that he knew her better than any other person did.

The girls burst into chatter, each saying what they wanted to do with their artistic day.

"I wanna paint the living room!" shouted Lenni, laying claim to her territory immediately. Mikey nodded.

"Mind if I share with you? I have some good ideas for that," Mily said, smiling pointedly at Raphael as he rejoined them at the table. He eyed her warily.

"No ponies, Mily," he snapped seriously. Mily held up her hands innocently.

"Oh, of course not," she replied with mock sincerity.

"Bedroom hallway," Raphiella and Hexadecimal said together, Hex added an extra determined head nod.

"Can I do that too?" Tyger asked, not wanting to be left out.

"Well, duh," said Hex, rolling her eyes. "We're not going to make you go do something else."

"I call the dojo," said Leo, raising his hand. "Arista and Machias can help me."

"As long as you do get some painting done, my son," Master Splinter put in, a light smile on his face. Leo nodded, returning the smile. Leo was actually a pretty good painter, though most of his siblings did not know about it.

"I'm gonna paint the doors," Punker said, a mischievous gleam in her eye. She glanced sideways at Raphael. "And don't worry Raph, I'll make sure your door is a treasure of gleaming cheerfulness!

"No ponies!" Raphael said again, this time slamming a fist on the table. Mily and Lenni giggled.

"I'm going to paint the kitchen," Danceingfae said, looking into the air as she pictured what she wanted it to look like in her head. Maybe an Italian kitchen theme. This was going to be fun!

"I think I'll just stick to my lab," said Donatello. "Wanna help out, Zip?"

"Of course!" replied Ziptango, looking up from her Fruit Loops. "It'll be the best looking lab in Manhattan."

"I want to paint the ceiling!" Daydream exclaimed excitedly. "I don't care if I don't get to paint anything else, I want to paint the ceiling, please, Mikey?" She looked hopefully at Michelangelo.

Mikey laughed. "I had the same idea, Day. I even borrowed some scaffolding from some construction dudes." He made a face as Master Splinter gave him a reproving look. "I'm gonna give it back, Sensei, I swear," he said, crossing his heart.

"You would do well to remember that promise, my son," Master Splinter said.

Mikey turned back to Daydream, the grin returning to his face. "So, you and me vs. the big bad ceiling."

"No fair," said Lenni, frowning at her sister in the tie-dyed bandana. "That's not fair, I want to paint the ceiling, too."

"You're already painting the living room with me, Lenni," Mily said, feeling disappointed that her sister did not want to work with her anymore. Lenni tossed her brown hair back.

"Well, that was before I thought about the ceiling." She glared at Daydream, who she saw as a threat now that she was going to be the one working with Mikey. "Daydream will paint with you and I can paint with Mikey."

"Wait, I don't wanna paint the living room!" Daydream replied, then added, "No offense, Mi."

"None taken."

"But you're going to paint with Mily, cause I wanna paint the ceiling!" Lenni complained.

"No!" replied Daydream, taking a firm stance on this. "Me and Mikey are gonna paint it."

"Mikey, please?" Lenni asked, ignoring Daydream now.

"She called it first," Mikey said with an apologetic shrug.

"Besides, Lenni, you might pop your stitches climbing up the scaffolding or something," Donatello said. Lenni glared at the both of them.

"Fine!" Lenore shouted angrily, as _she_ wanted Mikey, and it was _way_ too early to be up considering she hadn't slept too well. She shoved her chair back as she got up from the table, sending it flying. She then proceeded over to the sink and tossed her bowl and spoon into it with a loud clang. She angrily brushed past everyone, stalking out into the den.

Master Splinter's tail swished warily behind him, but he didn't say a word. He'd talk to her about her attitude later.

"I think I'll paint a unicorn on Raph's door," TMNTPunker snickered, breaking the awkward silence. "I'm sure he'll _love_ it."

"Do an' die a long, slow, painful death," Raphael snarled.

"Well, let's go grab our colours and such," Michaelangelo grinned, not letting his littlest sister's attitude get the best of him. "I'm sure a few bowls can wait, can't they Sensei?"

"I'm sure one will be doing them by herself rather shortly," Master Splinter replied.

The others all shrugged, getting up and tossing their dirty bowls and spoons into the sink as the milk got put back into the refrigerator. They all quickly escaped the kitchen, all surprised to see just how much paint Michaelangelo had confiscated.

TMNTPunker quickly grabbed the paint she wanted and took off down the hall to paint everybody's doors.

Raphiella, TygeroftheWynd, and HexAdecimal all eyed the paint for a bit, as they talked over exactly what they wanted to do to the bedroom hallway.

Leonardo, Arista, and Machias all grabbed a few cans of paint and some brushes, before scurrying off into the dojo. They weren't just going to paint, but secretly practice as well. Though, Arista was determined not to let her brother in blue see just how much she'd been practicing. She did want to do this without his help, if at all possible.

Donatello and Ziptango grabbed different shades of purple and disappeared into his lab to get to work on their design.

"Is everything set up to paint the ceiling?" Daydream asked Michaelangelo.

"Yup," Michaelangelo grinned. "I set it all up before I woke y'all up."

"What's we gonna paint on the ceiling, Mikey?" Daydream wanted to know.

"Got any ideas, Kiddo?" Michaelangelo smiled, grabbing some blue and white paint.

"Ooh! I know!" Daydream exclaimed, as Michaelangelo nodded knowing what she was thinking. "Let's go!"

The two of them disappeared, leaving Mily, Raphael, and Danceingfae all standing there looking at the remaining paint cans.

"Well, they didn't leave us with much, now did they?" Raphael commented.

"You're actually gonna paint, Raph?" Danceingfae smirked. "Yah not just gonna splash it everywhere an' be done with it?"

Raphael gave her a pointed Look. "I'm gonna help Mily here, 'till the lil' crankster gets her shell in here to paint what she staked claim on."

"Thanks Raph!" Mily said, feeling a bit better. She was still a bit hurt by her little sister's actions though.

Danceingfae shrugged and grabbed some colours she figured she'd need to paint the kitchen. She sighed when she found Lenore in there grumbling as she did the dishes.

"Let me guess, Sensei's makin' yah do chores for today," Danceingfae piped up, letting the other girl know she was there and not alone anymore.

Lenore turned, wiping her tears from her face. Master Splinter had taken her to his study while everyone was busying eyeing the paint. She'd been given quite the talking too and had been whacked with his walking stick a couple times, like he usually did to their brothers when they did stupid things.

Danceingfae frowned some. "What's wrong? Not like yah haven't been in trouble before."

"I c'n still paint," Lenore said finally, though very softly. "Just not with Mikey….I'm not allowed near Mikey 'till bed." She felt her heart wrench, as the thought of not being able to hug and tackle her brother all day broke her heart.

"Well, you shoulda just let things be when Daydream staked claim on the ceiling," Danceingfae told her. "She didn't know Mikey was gonna want to paint it too."

"I better get back to the dishes," Lenore responded, turning her back on her sister. "You just go on paintin' whatever it is yah gonna paint."

Danceingfae shrugged. If her sister wanted to be like that, she wasn't going to pity her or show sympathy.

Back in the living room, Raphael and Mily were arguing over the ideas they had for the space they were in.

"You didn't even stake claim on anything!" Mily yelled. "Lenni an' I are s'pose to paint the room 'cause _we'd_ ideas for it!"

"Well, _I_ got _better_ ideas!" Raphael growled back.

"If yah gonna be like this, I don't want yah painting with me!"

"Fine!" Raphael snapped, tossing a paint brush down and leaving the room.

"Now we know where Lenni get it from!" Mily shouted after him.

Raphael froze slightly. Was this why the youngest one was so hard-headed and stubborn and such a brat? Was she really just trying to be like him, even if she idolized Michaelangelo? He shrugged and continued to stalk off down the hallway.

"Careful Day!" Michaelangelo exclaimed, catching his sister before she fell off the scaffolding. "We don't need another injured turtle 'round here. They seem to get pretty grumpy."

Daydream gave a nervous giggle. "Thanks, Mikey. Thought for sure I was gonna fall."

"Nah, not when yah got a ninja up here next to yah," Michaelangelo smiled. "I'd never letcha fall, if I could help it."

"So are we really gonna paint a sky up here?"

"Yup. That way we can always see the sun."

"An' the stars! We can paint the night sky on another ceiling, or the other half of this one."

"Good idea, Kiddo," Michaelangelo told her, ruffling her hair affectionately. "Now, let's get to work shall we?"

Daydream nodded eagerly and began to paint a big white fluffy cloud.

In the dojo Leonardo, Machias, and Arista were busy practicing their ninjitsu. They hadn't started to paint yet, as they wanted to get their practicing out of the way first.

"You're both doing rather well," Leonardo complimented. "But if yah wanna pass the trails, you have to do better than that."

Arista and Machias both shared a look, knowing that the other was holding back so not to let Leonardo know just how much practice they had done.

Their look was not lost on Leonardo, but he decided not to push it, as they'd never budge and tell him what the look was about.

"What're we gonna paint, Leo?" Machias asked suddenly.

"Something related to the dojo, of course," Leonardo replied with a smile.

Machias rolled her eyes slightly. Of course, only Leonardo would insist upon that. Though, it didn't sound like such a bad idea. It could be fun.

Splinter was wandering around the lair watching everybody else paint. She was feeling a little put off, seeing as nobody had asked her to paint with them or what she wanted to do. They'd all gotten up and left before she'd stated her opinion, and Lenore's outburst hadn't helped matters any either. She got an idea then - a _brilliant_ idea. She grabbed two cans of paint and very quickly exited the dojo unseen as everyone else was pre-occupied, including Master Splinter.

"Wow, that's a nice portrait of Mikey," TygeroftheWynd told HexAdecimal. "They're gonna be shocked to know we're painting our family on these walls – and right next to their bedroom doors too."

"Well, what else would we paint down this hall?" HexAdecimal shrugged. "I mean, it's not like anybody's gonna be expecting it."

"Ponies," Raphiella giggled. "Though, I promised Raph I wouldn't paint any."

The three giggled, imaging Raphael's face if TMNTPunker painted a pony on his bedroom door. They knew he wouldn't be pleased, which made it all that more amusing.

TMNTPunker glanced down the hall at her sisters. "Do I look like I have a death wish?"

"Maybe," HexAdecimal replied. "According to Leo, everybody else does."

"Well, it's my job to prove him wrong then," TMNTPunker smiled. "Of course, he's not gonna like that."

"Hey Donnie? Do yah think we got enough shades of purple?" Ziptango asked. They were making weird designs on the walls with every shade of purple they had. "Or should we go find some more?"

"Zip, I don't know where Mikey got these or how he convinced Master Splinter to let him go out there alone," Donatello replied. "So, yes, I think we have enough. Don't want to overdo it, now do we?"

"Nah," Ziptango smiled. "That's Mikey's job. He overdoes everything."

"Point taken," Donatello smiled back, as he continued to paint. They'd covered up all his precious items with drop clothes they had found lying around in the lab.

Back in the living room, Mily was busy painting her idea on the wall, when Lenore came in silently.

"Mily?"

"What?" Mily asked sharply. "Decide yah better come paint with me, like Sensei probably said too?"

"I'm sorry," Lenore apologized softly. "I wanna paint with you, like I said in the beginning. I was just kinda mad that Mikey wanted to paint with Daydream, when he usually does things with me."

"You can't him all the time, Lenni. There _is_ twelve of us an' only one of him."

"That's what Sensei said – again," Lenore answered with a heavy sigh. "If yah not too mad at me, c'n I _please_ paint with you? I got an idea of what I c'n add to yours."

"Just _don't_ paint any Backstreet Boys," Mily told her firmly. "Nobody will like that."

"I won't. I promise. Cross my heart," Lenore nodded enthusiastically.

"Grab a brush," Mily smiled.

Lenore returned the smile and immediately rushed over to her sister's side to help out. She still felt a little miserable, but at least she had Mily to hang out and goof off with. If she couldn't have her favourite brother, at least she could hang out with one of her favourite sisters.

Master Splinter had decided to check on his pupils, as they'd all been rather quiet for a while, despite the occasional giggle that was heard. He made sure they were all safely inside the lair, chuckling when he found Splinter painting a beach theme in the bathroom.

"We're Ninjas in Hawaii!" Splinter exclaimed proudly. "Everybody keeps sayin' they wanna go, so I brought it to us!"

Master Splinter nodded his approval, then went on down the bedroom hall, stopping to stand behind TMNTPunker. "That is very nice of you to paint that on the door for your sister," he commented.

TMNTPunker looked up from the door she was painting on. "Well, I figured Lenni'd like nothin' better than Brian on her door, so I just _had_ to paint him on there for her. Maybe it'll keep her quiet for a while, so she won't throw so many tantrums."

"One can only hope," Master Splinter replied gently. "And I'm sure Mily will love whatever you decide to paint on there for her."

"Oh, she will. Trust me," TMNTPunker grinned. "I know what everybody likes."

"ALRIGHT! WHO PAINTED A UNICORN ON MY SHELL CYCLE!" A voice roared out in the main room of the lair, coming from one very angry looking turtle in red.


	12. Arista & Machias Take The Trials

A.N.: Hey y'all!!! Sorry it took us me so dang long! I've had Daydream's half for a couple months now. Well, Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Neither of us owns TMNT or any of the original TMNT characters associated with them – though, we wish we did. Also, all the girls own themselves, though I do own Lenni, Daydream, & Ziptango & yes, they know this too – lol. I own them! Muah hahaha! Lol. Well, obviously I'm going to own myself – haha. Thanks!

Note: Special thanks to Arista for helping me out with my half! You always got such great ideas when I get stuck! Thank-you!

* * *

Eventually Raphael calmed down, but he never did find out who had painted all over his shell cycle. He had a strong suspicion that it was Punker but the white and blue wearing turtle girl claimed that she had been working on doors all day long. Still he reserved a glare for her each time she entered the room or came near him. Punker thought the whole thing was amusing; she would have to congratulate whoever it was who had done it whenever she found out.

At the end of the day, the turtle clan walked throughout their home, admiring the paintings and each other's creativity. Lenni let out an excited squeal when she saw the nearly life-size painting of Brian on her door. She launched herself onto Punker who let out an oof before she laughed.

"Like it much?" Punker asked.

"Love it!" exclaimed Lenni. She has to restrain herself from touching the wet paint. "It's sooo cool! Thanks a ton, sis."

Punker shrugged and tweaked the end of Lenni's bandanna. "No problem, shorty, it was fun."

Lenni beamed happily. Having Brian on her door might just make up for not getting to paint the ceiling with Mikey. She hugged Punker again before bounding off to inspect the bathroom that everyone was oooh-ing and ahh-ing over.

Everyone's doors had been specially painted to match them and their personalities. Leo's door was blue with a sword on it; Raphael's door was shades of vibrant red; Donnie's door had been painted like a computer screen with green codes on it; Michelangelo's door was bright orange with a yellow surf board. The girl's was more varied but none of them were very detailed except for Lenni's. Punker, though a great artist, couldn't paint sixteen intricate paintings in just one day.

Out of the older turtle girls, Punker's own door had a guitar on it, Danceingfae's had a small unicorn, Splinter's door looked like a book cover, Machias' door was purple-striped, Arista's had Japanese phrases on it, and Hexadecimal's door was black with red splatter paint.

The younger girls' doors were a little different since they shared. Daydream and Ziptango door was painted green with purple, yellow, white, and orange polka dots while Tyger and Ella's door was a lightening-striped with red and blue. The back of Mily and Lenni's door had been painted bright pink to satisfy the Pink Freak, Mily.

All of the girls were pleased with what they had on their doors and they all applauded Punker's efforts. Mainly because she would have pounded them otherwise.

Mikey was proudly showing off the ceiling-encompassing painting that he and Daydream had done to everyone who walked into the living room. They had used fast drying paint so nothing would drip down on someone.

"Finally living up to your namesake, Mikey?" teased Leo as he looked up at the sky-filled ceiling.

Michelangelo laughed.

"If you want to compare our sewer tunnel ceiling to the Sistine Chapel, be my guest," said Mikey with a big grin. Splinter stared at him from the couch where she had already curled up with a book.

"You know what the Sistine Chapel is?" she asked incredulously. She never doubted her brother's intelligence but she did not know he was knowledgeable in great art history. He made a face at her and crossed his arms over his plastron indignantly.

"Of course," he said, thrusting his beak into the air, "Doesn't everybody?"

"I don't!" shouted Mily as she walked into the room. "But, then again, I don't really care anyways. Oh well." She rushed over to the couch and jumped up beside Splinter. "I have no idea how you can read, there's so much to see!"

Michelangelo laughed at his pink-wearing sister. She was certainly in an excited mood. "Sugar much, Mily?"

"Maybe," she exclaimed, leaping from one couch to the other. "I found a stash of pixie stix in my room that I hid a couple weeks ago. It was great! Almost all the colors were still there." She beamed, obviously pleased with her own good luck.

"Don't jump on the furniture, Mils," Leonardo scolded gently. "Master Splinter doesn't like it and you've known that rule since you were three."

"Yeah, Mily, listen to Leo for once," said Splinter, narrowing her eyes at her younger energetic sister. "Maybe it'll be a good thing."

"It's always a good thing to listen to me," said Leo, a smirk on his face. Mikey rolled his eyes.

"You just don't want me to be distracting," accused Mily but she sat down anyways. She looked up expectantly at Michelangelo. "So…what now?"

As if to answer her question, Lenni, Daydream, Ziptango, and Tyger ran in, all screeching and laughing. Lenni ran up to Mikey and hid behind him while Daydream dragged Zip around the other side of the couch. Tyger jumped in the chair and used her momentum to vault over the back of, ducking down to hide.

"What're you-" Leo started but Lenni shushed him promptly.

"We're not here!" she insisted and Splinter let out a snort of a laugh as she flipped the page.

Well, at least your brains aren't," said Splinter with a smug smirk, "But they're never around now, are they?"

"Oh hush," Daydream's voice came from behind the couch. Suddenly Raphiella came running into the room in a fashion that was extremely similar to her sisters' earlier entrances.

"Ready or not, here I come!" she exclaimed and started to peek around the room. She spotted Lenni hiding behind Mikey and she shook her head, "Lenni, I swear, you still think we're five or something. Find a better hiding spot!"

"This is a great hiding spot," retorted Lenni as she raised her chin.

Mikey nodded, "Yep, I'm amazing."

"You're a dork," Splinter said, raising the book up over her face. She let out a squeal as Michelangelo suddenly pounced on her, ripping the book out of her hands and tickling her. Splinter screeched with giggles and batted at him, trying to make him go away. Mikey was not to be deterred and he relentlessly tickled her until she was breathless.

"My hiding spot!" cried Lenni when Mikey disappeared. Thinking quickly, she ran over to the couch where Daydream and Zip were hiding. Raphiella shot after her and caught her halfway.

"You're it!" shouted Raphiella, darting back out of reach. Lenni childishly stomped her foot on the ground.

"No fair!" she shouted, crossing her arms over her plastron. "I wasn't even hiding yet."

"It is too fair," said Raphiella from where she was standing by Leonardo. Leo rolled his eyes at the whole situation. One little sister was pouting, one was dying from laughter, one was jumping on the couch, one was gloating, and three were hiding. Just another day in the Hamato house. Sighing, he turned to Michelangelo.

"I'm going to go help Arista train. No doubt she's already in the dojo," said Leo, a small smile on his face. Mikey rolled his eyes.

"Where else would she be?" Mikey said, shaking his head. "Tell her I said to take it easy. She's going to kill herself with it or, worse, become just like you! NOOOO!" Melodramatically, Mikey fell to his knees in mock horror and despair. Leo gave him a withering look before heading off to the dojo.

When he got to the dojo, he stopped at the doorway, surprised at what he saw. Instead of Hexadecimal and Arista practicing, Raphael standing opposite of Arista and they were sparring rather violently with one another.

Arista launched herself at Raphael, katana blade shimmering in the fluorescent lights. Raphael jerked his sai up and deflected her blow. Her strikes were fluid and smooth while his were quick and sharp, always anticipating hers. Arista was the faster of the two, and she kept Raph on the balls of his feet as he avoided her katana. After a while, Raphael grew tired of playing around and deftly maneuvered the sai in the right position. When Arista struck again, the sword flew out of her hands and the sharp point of a sai was at her neck.

"Alright, alright, I get it," grumbled Arista, backing away from the blade, hands up in defeat. Raphael smirked and twirled a sai on one finger.

"You're getting there, kid," he said and gave her bandana tails an affectionate yank. She swatted at him with her hand, but he had already moved away.

He glanced at Leo when he reached the doorway, "Why ain'tcha taught her how to twist the sword and get the sai out of my hands? It's not like you don't know how." He left before Leo could say anything, causing the older turtle to roll his eyes. Leo had taught Arista how to do that; she just hadn't remembered it at that time. Or something like that.

Arista sat down on the mats of the dojo and rested her elbows on her knees. Sweat had broken out on her forehead; Raphael was an amazing sparring partner. What he somewhat lacked in grace, he made up for it with raw power and determination. She frowned as she went over the match in her head. She should've been able to throw his blades.

"You were tired," Leo said as if reading her mind. She hadn't even noticed him come in and sit down beside her on the mats. She sighed and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"I don't think I'm ready for the Trials," she said, her voice exhausted. Leo raised an eye ridge.

"Arista," he said, catching her attention with his serious voice. "I know you're ready. Whether you think you're capable enough or not, I know you are and Master Splinter does too. So stop doubting yourself."

Arista narrowed her eyes at him, "You're not just saying that?"

Leonardo laughed, "When do I ever just say stuff?"

Arista grinned, "Never, I guess. 'Cept when you tell Raphael you're going to beat him up when he leaves the lair without permission. You never go through with that threat."

Leonardo made a face. Raphael was always leaving the lair, no matter what anyone said to him. If anyone was going to blow their cover one day, it would probably be Raphael and his I-walk-on-the-wild-side attitude. He wouldn't mean to, and he'd be sorry, of course, but Leo was pretty darn sure it'd still be Raphael's fault. "I just haven't gotten around to doing that yet."

"Mmhmm," Arista mumbled, not really believing him.

At the end of the week, everyone was in the dojo practicing when Master Splinter signaled them to stop. He stepped in front of his children who had situated themselves in a semicircle around him. A very serious expression was on his face as he looked at each of them.

"I have decided that today, we shall begin the Trials," he said in a slow, deliberate voice. There were a couple excited squeals from Mily and Raphiella, while Lenni let out a heavy, exaggerated groan.

Arista and Machias stared at one another, not really knowing what to do. They moved forward, separating themselves from the others. They looked at Master Splinter whose face was like a stone, showing none of its regular emotions. "Everyone who has not yet taken the Trials may leave."

No one made a beeline for the door except for Lenni. She hated the Trials and hated being reminded that she'd have to take them one day. She just didn't like ninjitsu like her sisters! Why couldn't she just be Lenni, a mutant turtle that wasn't a ninja? Somehow, she didn't think that would ever happen in her family. Her bo staff knocked against the doorframe as she made her exit. That was another thing against her! Her other sisters had gotten real weapons, and she was still stuck with a bo staff that she couldn't really use. Not like Donnie, at least. Donnie could make the bo staff deadly; Lenni usually just tripped over it.

Slowly, the other girls, most of them from the younger group, left the dojo. Tyger, the last one out the door, shut it behind her. Leonardo walked over and shut it completely; she had left the door open a crack in hopes of eavesdropping. She snapped her fingers in anger when Leo closed the door. That didn't stop her, Zip, and Ella from crowding around the door while the others ran off to enjoy a bit of free time.

Inside of the dojo, Arista and Machias had begun meditating, clearing their minds of everything that could distract them from the Trials. Arista found herself wondering if she had fed Rieko. Machias couldn't remember if she had lost Michelangelo's favorite comic book last night or not. Meditating was never as easy as it seemed. After a few minutes of deep breathing and picturing themselves somewhere entirely different, without thoughts or feelings, the two of them stood up from the mats and bowed to Master Splinter.

"We shall begin," he said, and nodded towards Arista. "You are first, my daughter."

Arista moved to the middle of the dojo, the mats soft on the bare soles of her feet. She could feel her siblings' eyes on her, not scrutinizing her for mistakes, but just watching. Arista took a deep, soothing breath and started performing katas. Each one had been ingrained in her mind since a young age.

They were like old friends, each one more complicated than the last. She would have to complete all the ones she knew with near perfection in order to pass. Then there would be a part of the Trials that she didn't know about, and she would have to pass that too.

Arista moved across the dojo with a grace all her own. She did not misstep or misplace her footing. She was a center of balance and focused thought, each movement coming from her with ease. The katas flew by seamlessly, the next beginning where the last left off. Sometime during the motions, she pulled her katana from its sheath and began to perform the weapons katas.

When she finished the last and most complicated kata that she knew, she bowed to Master Splinter and went back over to her siblings. Leo gave her an encouraging smile while Michelangelo gave her a cheerful thumbs-up.

Next Machias stepped forward, bowing to Master Splinter once she had taken Arista's spot. She'd stepped forward, as Master Splinter had motioned for her to do so. She curled her toes up, then stretched them out to try and ease some of the tension in her body. She also liked the feel of the mats beneath her feet. She took a calming breath, then began her katas – most of which were the same as Arista's, but some different, as they'd different weapons, therefore they had a few different katas.

She performed them with ease, only stumbling once, but it was so slight and her moves so quick that unless you were a highly trained ninja master or a male ninja turtle, you'd have never noticed it. Despite her small slip up, she never once stopped. She was determined to pass the Trials, no matter what it took. She had practiced plenty, even if it always seemed she was goofing off – in truth, she usually practiced while everyone was asleep, so that no one would be able to see her train. It was bad enough they still called her 'Match' occasionally; she did not want to be nicknamed 'Mini Leo' like Arista had been. Though, Arista always took pride in that fact, she knew she'd never be able to stand it – no matter how much she loved her brother in blue.

She remained focused on her katas, eventually pulling her ninjato from its sheath, and immediately started in on her weapons katas. She was swift, she was quick, she was skillful – proving she had indeed listened intently during lessons, and not just argued with Lenni.

Soon enough, Machias has finished doing all her katas. She bowed and stepped back to resume her previous place, before having had to perform for everyone.

Once they had both finished showing off their katas, they had to spar with one another, their brothers, and each sister who'd already taken and passed the Trials. This proved to be no easy task, as they were to use their weapons and not just their fists and feet.

Arista went first, trying not to admire Leonardo's stance and katanas, as she retrieved her own katanas from their sheaths. She was ready and could do this – she just knew she could! She'd trained extra hard, with her sister's help – heck, she'd even had Raphael's help! Now was her moment to shine, and shine she hoped she would.

Leonardo bowed to his younger opponent, hiding his proud smile as she returned the bow being careful to bow a little lower than him, but never once take her eyes off him.

Master Splinter gave the signal and the two of them immediately began to spar. Their katanas swished and clanged and shone in the dojo light. They were both determined to win and get a good work out in the process – though, Arista was mostly focused on winning, so that she could pass the Trials. It was her dream to pass the Trials, as it meant she was old enough to patrol and be given more responsibility. It also meant she got more alone time with her favourite brother, though her and her sisters always declared they'd stopped the favourite brother thing long ago.

They sparred for quite some time; Arista finally disarmed Leonardo, and grinned like a chesire cat as she placed her blades next to his throat in a scissor like manner. She couldn't help but feel extremely proud of herself, as Leonardo had been an extremely tough opponent to beat – especially since he was second in command on the clan.

Machias stepped forward, when signaled too, more than ready to kick Raphael's ornery shell. She was glad he was her sparring partner, as this could be payback for all those time he's truly annoyed her.

She bowed low to her brother, keeping a wary eye on him at all times – unable to keep from scowling slightly when she saw his sadistic smirk.

"Yer goin' down," Raphael mouthed, trying to psych her out.

Once they were given the go ahead, Machias charged her brother immediately, her ninjato coming out of its sheath swiftly. "HIYAH!!!!!" She screamed, slicing it through the air, aiming for his head.

Raphael blocked her easily with a sai, having had predicted that particular move. He'd been watching her spar for quite some time now, and knew how she worked. Though, little did he know that she'd been secretly watching him spar as well.

Machias fought long and hard, making sure to block every more of her brother's that she could. She was more determined than ever to out spar him at this point in time; she feared if she didn't she just may not pass the Trials.

Raphael was secretly impressed with his younger sister's skills. She was holding her own quite well – much better than he'd expected. This proved she had to have been practicing more than she let on.

Finally, with a swift move and one quick jerk, Machias sent Raphael's sai flying over to the other side of the dojo. She then quickly moved in for the kill, her blade resting on his shoulder only about a half inch from his neck.

Master Splinter nodded, and both of his pupils bowed to one another, before Raphael stepped back and Arista forward. It was time they fought against one another. Arista stood with her katanas drawn, and Machias stood with her ninjato still out in front of her, both in a ready stance to attack. Upon hearing the words go, they quickly went after one another. The two of them were so focused on one another, that they didn't acknowledge the fact that Donatello was helping HexAdecimal out of the dojo very much. The girls were much too concerned with passing the Trials, so that they could be up on the next level like the other girls who were older than them were. They fought for a good long while, before Master Splinter finally declared it a draw.

The two of them re-sheathed their weapons and stepped back from one another after bowing to the same level the other had.

Master Splinter nodded his approval, remaining silent for a few moments, before finally speaking.

"Now, it is time for the true test," he began. "You both shall work together to find the magnolia flower that is in a clay pot on the other side of town. It is the antidote to a foreign disease, which HexAdecimal has seem to have contracted."

Machias and Arista eyed one another quickly; they'd seen HexAdecimal be carried out earlier, and had wondered just what was going on. Though, neither had given it much thought or attention, as they were much too busy sparring – but, maybe they should have paid more attention to it.

"You have one hour to go and fetch it, and bring it back here with all its petals in tact," Master Splinter told them. "I fear if you do not get it here in time, your sister may perish."

"Hai, Sensei," Machias and Arista replied, bowing in unison. They knew they had to retrieve the flower at once! They did _not_ want for HexAdecimal to perish!

Master Splinter bowed in return and watched as the two of them hurried on out of the dojo to go and fetch the magnolia flower that had been requested. He hoped they would do well, as he needed to know that his students could work well together as a team. Especially since these two seemed so opposite of one another – just like Raphael and Leonardo.

Meanwhile, in the living room, the seven turtles who'd yet to take the Trials were sitting about watching television and playing cards, as they contemplated on just how their two sisters were doing.

"I bet on Match," Splinter said. Though she was the oldest girl in the room, she wasn't allowed in the dojo as she had yet to take the Trials herself. And secretly, she was glad for it. "She's worked harder than y'all know."

"Pfft. If you call goofing off and skateboarding all the time working hard, then yeah, she'll do just fine," Raphiella snorted. "That's all she does, other than argue with Lenni."

"I resent that!" Lenore piped up.

"You don't resent it, nimwad," TygeroftheWynd told her. "You're the cause of it."

"Shaddup," Lenore replied, turning back to her show.

"Well, I bet on Ris," Daydream stated. "She's worked extra hard."

"She's Mini Leo, whatcha expect?" Splinter replied. "If Leo ever told her to jump, she'd ask how high!"

"How would you know?" Ziptango demanded.

"Well, how would you know that she wouldn't?" Mily piped up. "Or that Punker wouldn't? They do favour him, remember?"

"I bet on Match," Lenore stated as a commercial came on.

"I thought you hated her?" Mily said.

"Just 'cause I said I hated her, don't mean I won't bet on her," Lenore answered. "An' I only said I hated her 'cause she tried to burst my BSB bubble. 'Sides, anyone who loves Leo most needs a good butt-kicking."

"Lenni!" Ziptango exclaimed. "You know you don't mean that! Hello! Who'd you yell for when Donnie was tryin' to stick yah with the needle and thread?"

Lenore glared at her sister. "Stuff it! I meant to call Raph!"

The other girls all rolled their eyes, just as the dojo door flew open and Machias and Arista flew out. They were quite surprised to see the two, having had expected the Trials to take much longer.

"Hey! Who passed?" Daydream wanted to know.

Machias shot the younger girl a Look of annoyance, as her and Arista ran for Donatello's lab, before running on out of the lair completely.

"What's with them?" Daydream pondered aloud, looking a bit hurt. "All I did was ask them a question."

"Well, maybe it has something to do with the fact that Donnie carried Hex out and into the infirmary earlier," Lenore pointed out, rolling her eyes somewhat. "I mean, he was in a hurry, and now they are too."

"You don't think something's seriously wrong with Hex, do you?" Mily fretted.

"Nah," Splinter shook her head. "They'd have told us….wouldn't they?"

The others all shrugged, except Lenore, who'd her eyes glued to the television set once more.

During this time, Machias and Arista were now up top and roof jumping, both trying not to panic as they sought out the magnolia flower their Master had insisted upon them finding. Both feared not finding it, as HexAdecimal would be the one to endure the consequences and not them – though, they'd forever have to live with the guilt of failing and causing their sister's untimely demise.

"Where should we look, Match?" Arista asked finally, as they paused to catch their breath. They'd just been running and roof jumping, with no set destination in mind.

"Watch it, Mini Leo!" Machias snapped. "And Sensei _did_ say the other side of town – so _obviously_ we ought to look their first!"

"Yeesh, take a chill pill, will yah?" Arista commented, ignoring the 'Mini Leo' comment – for now. She _was_ her own person, not Leonardo's clone! "I forgot, okay?"

"Let's just worry about Hex and finding that stupid flower to save her," Machias replied.

"Well, why don't we go this way first and circle back?" Arista suggested, pointing to her left.

"I say we go right," Machias countered. "It's not like Sensei actually gave us much to go on."

"I think it's shorter, if we go left," Arista insisted. "It may save us some valuable time."

"How would you know it's shorter, if none of us have ever been to the other side of town?" Machias demanded. "Only our brothers have been there, and maybe Hex, Punker, and Dance. For all we know, the right way is the shorter way!"

"Just because it's our 'right' doesn't mean it's the 'right' way to go!" Arista argued.

The two sisters stood there for a few minutes, bickering over which way to go, as they were secretly watched by their older brothers – though, the girls had no idea.

"Look at 'em," Raphael commented to the other three. "They're standin' there wastin' time arguin', 'stead of goin' to get the antidote to save Hex."

Leonardo shook his head. "If they take too much longer, they're not going to pass, and Sensei's not going to be the least bit happy."

"Boy, if I were them, I'd get to scattin'," Michaelangelo piped up. "No wrath is worse than Sensei's wrath when he's angry."

"Agreed," Donatello nodded, though he saw their Sensei's wrath less often than his brothers.

They all continued to watch silently, as the two girls went on disputing over which way they were going to go.

"Yanno, we're wasting time and obviously we aren't gonna ever agree," Arista told her sister. "So why don't we just split up and use the communicators to keep in contact."

"Agreed," Machias replied. "We'll cover more ground that way too."

"Why didn't we think of this before?" Arista laughed somewhat.

"We were too busy pretending to be Raph and Leo," Machias smiled. "See yah there!"

"See yah!" Arista smiled back, quickly turning and running off to the left, as Machias quickly headed right.

"What in the world?" Leonardo commented from the boys' hidden spot. "They're supposed to work together, not split up. If they run into the Foot, they're toast!"

"Especially if it's a shit-load," Raphael added. "Donnie an' I'll follow Ris."

"Fine, Mikey and I will follow Machias," Leonardo nodded. "Let's go!"

With that, the foursome split up to go and follow their sisters – who they've now deemed foolish. They understood how badly the girls wanted to pass the Trials, but they were to work as a team, not just split up and go in opposite directions – that always, _always_ lead to trouble!

Arista leapt from building to building quickly, in hopes of getting to the other side of town as fast as she could. She just _had_ to find that magnolia flower, so they could save Hex! She just _had_ too! It wasn't so much about passing the Trials anymore; it was about saving her sister! Hex - the sister that was always there to help her; even if she only needed help with a homework question.

She was in such a state of panic and hurry that she wasn't always fully paying attention to where she was landing. She landed upon one building beautifully, only to have her one foot twist as she tried to move again, as it'd gotten stuck in an unseen pipe.

"OWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" She howled loudly, her body turning and causing her ankle to twist even more as she fell. She smacked herself in the head angrily. "Stupid! Stupid! STUPID!"

She winced as she tried to move her foot out of the pipe, only to find it was horribly stuck. Leave it to her to fall and break her ankle!

"Dammit!" She cursed angrily. "I'm _never_ gonna pass the Trials now!"

She sat thinking quietly. "So much for saving Hex... Dammit! Hex is gonna die all 'cause of me!"

It was then she'd decided she had best alert Machias to her plight.

Meanwhile, Machias had been jumping and scaling rooftops, when she came face to face with the Foot.

"Oh, crud!" She exclaimed, quickly pulling her ninjato out as she got into a ready stance. She would fight until the end if she had too – especially if it meant getting past the Foot, so that she'd be able to fetch the magnolia flower that was required, in order to save HexAdecimal!

She growled deep in her throat, as the Foot began to attack one by one. She fought them off easily at first, but then it began to get a little more difficult – enough for her to break a sweat.

"If you Bastards make me fail, I'll _kill_ you!" She snarled, slicing her ninjato through one of them. At the moment, it didn't matter if this would be the first time she'd ever had to kill someone – it was more than necessary to survive!

She groaned inwardly, as she heard her communicator go off. She flicked the switch quickly, and answered as she knocked a Foot Soldier out. "Not a good time, Ris!"

"Machias! I'm stuck! I can't get to the flower!" Arista's voice cried through the watch-like communicator on Machias' wrist. "I-I think I broke my ankle!"

"Nice going, Mini Leo!" Machias snapped, dodging another Foot Soldier. "But I can't help you right now; I'm in them idle of kicking some Foot Clan butt!"

"You're going to hafta get the flower, Match!" Arista cried. "And be careful!"

Machias growled even more, angrier than before. She quickly did a spin kick, knowing four Foot down in her rage. Soon enough, she'd killed them all – or at least knocked some out – and paused to talk to her sister, once a safe distance away from the unconscious Foot Soldiers.

"You want me to come get you, Ris?" She asked, now concerned for her sister.

"No!" Arista exclaimed. "You hafta get the magnolia! You hafta save Hex!"

"I'm not passin' this thing without yah!" Machias stated.

"You _have_ too!" Arista told her. "At least one of us _has_ to pass, or Sensei's gonna be _so_ disappointed!"

"I can't just leave you behind!" Machias snapped. "Now, where are you?"

"I'll just slow you down!" Arista exclaimed. "Get the flower, then if you've time, come and get me!"

Machias growled again. "Fine! But tell me where yer at anyway, so I know where to find you later!"

"I'm at the corner of Richardson and McLean!" Arista informed her. "I'm stuck on a rooftop."

"Alright, hang on," Machias replied, quickly heading in that direction.

"You better not be coming for me first!" Arista's voice yelled through the communicator. "I mean it, Match!"

"You don't stop callin' me Match, I'll leave you there for the Foot or Leo to find!"

Arista was silent for a moment. "Don't you _dare_ lead Leo to me! He _can't_ know!"

"Ris, I'd be more worried about the Foot finding me, than Leo."

"I'd rather the Foot finds me first – they won't give me a disappointed look," Arista sighed. "Just please find the magnolia."

"I'll do my best," Machias promised, pausing a moment. She began to laugh then. "Ris, you're _never_ gonna believe this!"

"What?"

"I'm on my way to get you – "

" - Machias!"

"And I found the flower," Machias finished, ignoring her sister's outburst.

"What?! Get it, and let's go!"

Machias quickly made her way to where the magnolia flower sat perched in a dark blue flower pot. She cautiously went over to it and scooped it up quickly, back-flipping away hurriedly, though making sure not to let any pedals or dirt fall from the flower pot.

"I'm comin' to get yah, Ris!"

"Hurry!" Arista told her. "We're running out of time!"

"How do you know that?"

"I've a watch on my other wrist!"

Machias rolled her eyes, as she jumped rooftops. "I should've known. Least one of us remembered to bring one."

"Well, we all know who the brains of this operation is," Arista teased, though she was in grave pain.

Machias laughed, and soon enough she'd found her sister, who was stuck atop the one building, her foot in a pipe. She set the magnolia down near Arista and eyed her foot warily.

"How the heck did yah manage this?"

"I was in a hurry, and I guess I forgot to watch where I stuck my feet when landing," Arista admitted.

"This is gonna hurt," Machias warned, slicing a small piece off her belt. "Here, stick this in yer mouth and bite down on it, so nobody will hear yah scream an' think I'm murdering yah."

Arista took the piece of leather belt, and stuck it in her mouth. She bit down on it extremely hard, screaming almost silently as Machias yanked her foot out of the pipe. She'd been unable to do it herself, as sitting up meant putting pressure on it.

"Looks broke to me," Machias observed. "Donnie's gonna hafta put a cast on it."

Arista groaned, as Machias helped her to stand. "How are we gonna make it home in time?"

"Don't you worry none about that," Machias told her. "You're gonna hafta put up with a bit of pain though."

"Anything to save Hex," Arista said.

"Well, let's go then," Machias told her, as she quickly tied a rope to a post and made sure it was safe to climb down. Luckily, Arista had gotten stuck on one of the lower buildings. "I'll go down first, then you come down an' I'll make sure yah don't kill yourself once there."

Arista nodded, and handed the flower over, as Machias helped her to sit on the ledge of the building.

Machias grabbed up the flower and quickly got herself down to the ground, before calling up to her sister. "C'mon Ris! You can do it!"

Arista bit down on the bit of leather belt, she'd placed back in her mouth to keep herself silent, and swung down onto the rope. She nearly passed out at the pain ripping through her leg as her foot hit the side of the building.

"Careful up there!" Machias yelled up.

"Easier said than done," Arista muttered around the leather. She managed to get herself down to the ground, and was grateful when Machias caught her and helped her to sit down for a moment.

Machias yanked and got the rope to come tumbling down. She quickly rolled it up and stuck it in the bag they'd brought with supplies. She then rooted in the bag for a moment, and held up a splint.

Arista groaned, as Machias set to work getting her ankle into the splint. Once that was done, she was helped up and ordered to hold onto the magnolia flower pot for all that she was worth.

Soon enough, after much grunting and groaning they were both safely back in the sewers once more.

"How much time we got?" Machias demanded.

"Ten minutes," Arista groaned.

Machias dug her rocket powered skateboard then. She helped Arista sit down on the front, and made sure her foot wouldn't be bothered. "You hold tight to that flower for all yer worth. I'll steer an' get us there on time."

Arista nodded, as Machias started up the skateboard. A few moments later, they were rocketing through the tunnels and ended up rocketing right on into the lair and into the dojo. Once in the dojo, Machias brought them to a stop, then grabbed the flower and hurried it on over to Master Splinter.

"Here, Sensei," Machias told him, bowing as she held the flower pot up for him to see. "We hope that we are in time to save HexAdecimal."

Master Splinter eyed the girl in front of him, then the one who still remained sitting on the skateboard. He noted the splint, and hid the smile that wanted to cross his face. If they were both here, considering Arista's condition, then they had definitely worked as a team.

"Thank-you, my daughter," he replied, handing it over to Donatello who had returned with his brothers shortly before the girls had. "I am sure Donatello will be able to heal her well now."

Donatello nodded and hurried on out of the dojo and into the infirmary, passing a group of confused younger siblings.

Machias turned and retrieved Arista from the skateboard and helped her over to stand before Master Splinter, both of them bowing carefully, as Machias held Arista up.

A few minutes later, HexAdecimal came bounding into the dojo, followed by Donatello.

"Took you guys long enough!" She exclaimed, grinning. "Ten more minutes an' I would've been dead! But, thank-you!"

Machias and Arista both frowned. "This was all just part of the Trials, wasn't it? She wasn't really sick!"

"Well, we had to think of something," Leonardo piped up. "And Sensei thought it would be a good challenge for you both. And it seems you have learned to work together."

"Like we'd a choice," Arista mumbled. "Stupid pipe poking out where it shouldn't be."

Raphael snorted. "Kid, if you'd been left there or had screamed plenty, you woulda been rescued in two seconds flat."

Arista eyed him, a bit surprised. "You were watching?!"

Raphael nodded. "We followed you two, to ensure that if yah got yerselves in trouble, no harm would come to yah."

"Well, harm did come!" Machias snapped, feeling angry they'd left poor Arista to suffer like that. "She's probably broken her ankle!"

"But," Master Splinter began, causing both girls to turn and face him. "You have both passed."

Two jaws dropped open and practically hit the floor. "We passed!?!?"

"Hai," Master Splinter nodded.

Machias and Arista both let out loud whoops of joy, and hugged briefly, before Arista finally yelped in pain.

"Sensei, may I please get Donnie to take care of my ankle now?" Arista pleaded, her eyes finally welling up with tears. "It hurts _so_ bad…"

"Hai," Master Splinter agreed. "Donatello shall care for you, my daughter."

He kissed both their heads, before speaking once more. "Both of you decide what we shall have for dinner tonight, and we shall celebrate as a celebration is definitely in order."

Both girls nodded. "Hai, Sensei."

Donatello came over and gently scooped Arista up into his arms then. "C'mon Ris, let's get you checked out. You come too, Machias. You seem to have some scraps from the Foot."

Machias groaned, but followed her brother in purple out nonetheless.

That night, once Arista's ankle had been placed into a cast, and dinner was made of hers and Machias' favourite foods, everyone sat down to eat and celebrate. The whole family was thrilled the two sister's had passed, despite Arista's injury and Machias encounter with the Foot. It was also announced, that very soon they would be going to April's farm house – which of course, gave them even more reason to celebrate.


	13. The Farm House

Disclaimer: We don't own the Ninja Turtles! We would gladly claim them all though. :o)

Everyone in the Hamato clan spent the next few days preparing to go to April's old farmhouse up in New Hampshire. When they were not packing, the girls were paying extra careful attention to their ninjitsu lessons and their studies. Their chores got done thoroughly and efficiently without any grumbling for once. Siblings who normally fought and bickered constantly stayed quiet and avoided each other. Weapons were polished and kept in tip top shape. Even Reiko the dog and Klunk didn't fight. No one wanted to get on Master Splinter's bad side with a vacation coming up.

When the day to leave finally came, everyone was packed and ready to go. They were going to take the van that Donnie had fixed up earlier in the year. It was a fifteen passenger but by taking out the seats and modifying it a bit, they could fit the whole family, shells and all, into the van. Since they were turtles, luggage wasn't really a problem; each family member brought one bag that was carefully packed with everything they thought was necessary for the trip. There was going to be a little more room in the van because Leonardo and Raphael had volunteered to ride their Shell Cycles instead.

It was becoming quite the hassle trying to get everyone in the van and on the road. They had woken up early in the morning, around four o'clock so they could beat most of the traffic. Under Master Splinter's directions, the family packed their stuff in the van and started to get in. The chaos was a little more orderly than if they had tried to direct themselves, but it was still quite the mess.

"Stop jumping on me, Reiko!" Mily cried as the hyper dog pounced on her then jumped over on top of Splinter's legs. The brown-wearing turtle made a grab at the dog but it slipped out of her hands only to bounce over to Mily again. "Blegh!" she exclaimed, wiping the dog slobber off of her face after he licked her face.

Arista grinned and whistled for the dog. It bounded over to her and flopped down over her lap before looking up at her with unmistakably mischievous eyes. She smiled and rubbed at his neck.

Master Splinter rubbed his hand against his forehead and sighed. The dog's active spirit was not so bad when he had the entire sewer to roam, but it could create a problem in the small confines of the van. He had thought it would be a good idea to leave the pet with April or Casey but his children had put up a fuss at that idea. Therefore, the dog was just one more element in his unbalanced equation of calm and energy.

Lenni had over packed her bag and was arguing with Leo over whether she could take all of it or not. "But I neeeed this stuff!" she said, holding onto the bag while Leo attempted to take it from her.

"It's twice the size of everyone else's," he said, trying to be fair. "If everyone had bags the size of yours then we'd have to toss at least four or five people out of the van."

"I vote that Machias goes first," said Tyger, sticking her tongue out at her sister.

The other turtle girl pulled a wry face, "Better watch it, sticking your tongue out. You never know when my ninjato might slip."

"Hey, I thought people who passed the trials had more control than that," said Ziptango, smirking as she played with her Gameboy.

Machias rolled her eyes, "I consider that control. I have enough control to know exactly when to let it slip…"

"We're not getting rid of anybody," said Leo, rubbing at his face with one hand. Huge family ventures like this were uncommon for a reason. Trying to get everyone to cooperate was a hassle that was only tackled once every few years.

"I got an idea, Leo," Lenni said as she edged towards the van, "How about we toss yours and Raph's bags? That'll make room, right, and y'all can practice survival skills."

"But we keep your toothbrushes," said Raphiella from inside the van, "Otherwise your morning breath may exterminate the entire clan."

"Hardy har har," said Raphael as he threw his bag into the van, aiming it at her. She deflected it and tossed a random hairbrush that was lying on the ground at his head.

"That's mine, no throwing!" Danceingfae exclaimed as Raphael caught it. She groaned as he broke it in his hand and tossed it back into the van.

"Well, it was yours," said Ella, trying to grin innocently at her older sister. Dance frowned, grabbed a piece of brush and chunked it at her. She then grabbed the second piece and flung it at Raphael who yet again caught it.

"Throw one more thing at me, I dare ya!" he snapped as he hurled it back into the van, making it ping off the inside. He wasn't exactly a morning person; his siblings would do well not to annoy him this early in the morning.

"Lenni, you're going to have to take half of this stuff out and get a smaller bag," Leo told his youngest sister as she started to pout. "There's just not enough room for it."

"But I toldja, I neeeed it," she whined. "It's my CDs and my books and my t-shirts and my stuffed animals and my drawing stuff."

"Basically your entire room," joked Mikey as he walked past her, his own backpack slung across one shoulder. He tossed it into the van as he walked up to it. He was surprised when it got pushed out again.

"Raphael, stop throwing things!" yelled Danceingfae as she leaned out the door. She was surprised to find Mikey standing beside the van, a confused look on his face. "Oh, um, sorry Mikey," she said, giving him a tired smile, "Thought it was Raph again."

"You're the one who started the throwing," growled Raphael, "Don't blame me."

"Then don't blame me," replied Dance testily. "It was Ella who threw that brush at your head, not me."

"After you threw your bag at me," said Ella self-righteously. She wasn't going to take the blame for something she didn't do.

Raphael glared at her, "Maybe next time it'll knock the lights outta ya."

"Wouldn't that be perfect, an unconscious Ella on our hands," Punker said sarcastically. She was sitting near the back of the van beside Donatello who was trying to handle the storage in the van. He had already checked the engine and everything; they would be good to go once everyone was in the van and ready to leave. Of course, at the rate they were going, that might happen…next week?

"There will be not knocking of the conscious!" said Mikey in a mock-diplomatic tone as he raised one hand solemnly. Dance giggled and grabbed her hand to pull him inside.

"Leo, I have to have this stuff so I can survive," Lenni argued, holding her bag close.

"I highly doubt that. All you need is your bo and a couple CDs and I'm certain you'll be fine." He glanced at what she had brought along and smirked as he realized she had left something, "Speaking of which, did you forget your bo?"

Lenni looked down at the ground. Damn. She had hoped he wouldn't have noticed that. Most of her sisters had already gotten to choose their weapons. Mily had the tessen fan, Machias had the ninjato, Arista with her katanas, Hexadecimal had sai, Ziptango used the naginata, and, heck, even Daydream used a bow and arrows! However, Lenni was still stuck with the dag-on stupid bo that Master Splinter had thought was the right weapon for her. Yeah, sure, it was a great weapon for Donnie; he knew how to use it to its greatest capacity. She, however, hated the bo. The weapon she really wanted to use was the sai, like Raphael and Hexadecimal.

"Nope, I don't think I forgot it," she said, cocking her head to the side as if doing her best to remember. Leonardo rolled his eyes.

"Let me guess. You didn't forget it, you left it on purpose."

"Umm…" she mumbled, looking towards the sky. Leo nodded towards the doorway that led back to the lair.

"Wanna go get it? And change your bag while your at it?" he said, crossing his arms over his plastron. That was his very recognizable I'm-in-charge pose. Lenni blew a sigh upwards, blowing her hair away from her face. No, she didn't want to go get it, but she knew better than to argue with Leo when he was in ultimate leader mode. Muttering angrily, she turned and walked back to the lair, dragging her bag behind her.

"Hex, move your fat butt!" said Daydream as she climbed into the van after her sister. The older turtle tossed a glare over her shoulder.

"Watch it, Day," growled Hex, not in a very good mood at 4:30 in the morning. A big grin dashed across Daydream's face.

"It's not like I can see past it or anything. I mean, my vision is full of butt," she retorted cheekily. Hex whirled around and aimed a smack at the side of Daydream's head. The turtle in the tie-dyed bandanna yelped and skipped backward, out of reach. Hex glowered at her before climbing the rest of the way into the van. Day looked over to Master Splinter who was doing the final head count.

"Are we ready to go now, Sensei?" she asked excitedly. She was oddly awake for it being 4:30 in the morning.

Master Splinter gave her a small nod, "We can leave once your sister returns."

"Pfft, we'll leave next year," grumbled Raphael as he leaned back against the van. Ella stuck her hand out the slightly open window and grabbed at Raphael's bandana tails. With a victory yell, she yanked back on the tails, forcing the back of Raph's head to make contact with the side of the van. He let out a snarl as he ripped away from the van and whirled around.

"Who did that!??! I'm gonna slam your head so hard into the ground, yer grandkids are gonna feel it!" he roared, storming towards the van door. Leo pulled Daydream back as Raph stormed past, ready to wreak havoc on anything that got in his way. There were squeals and shrieks of panic from inside the van as they rushed to close and lock the door.

"Mikey, Donnie, heeelp!" cried Ella as she rushed to close the door. Mikey was about to be apathetic and not do anything until he noticed the murderous look on Raph's face. At the last moment, he lunged for the door and together he and Ella managed to close it. Outside of the van, Raphael snarled, grunted, and pounded on the door.

"Ya open this door right now, I mean it, ya better open this door or yer gonna be regretting it for a year of Sundays, I swear! OPEN THIS DOOR!! NOW!!! RAGGHHH!"

Daydream looked up at Leo who just shook his head and rubbed his fingers against his forehead. Well, this was going to be an adventure.

0000000

Eventually, the entire clan was on the road, in the van or, in the case of Raphael and Leonardo, on a Shell Cycle. Most of the ones in the van fell asleep or read or played with some sort of electronic device. When they got there, it was like someone had let the cork out of a bottle of excitement. The girls poured out of the car and rushed the house like crazy people.

"Leave us a room!" Mikey yelled as someone unlocked the door and the multitude of turtle girls surged into the old farm house. Raphael smirked over at Mikey.

"It don't matter. We'll just shove a couple of them out into the hall."

There were enough rooms for everyone as long as they piled up four-five to a room. They could share beds by sleeping head to toe or spread out blankets on the floors. The boys slept two to a room while Sensei had a room all to himself. There was a lot of fussing and fighting as people tore into rooms, laid claim, and were then thrown out by someone older or stronger than themselves. Master Splinter demanded order and then retreated to his own room. He'd let the group of them figure it out; it'd teach them to work together.

There were six bedrooms in total, and only two bathrooms, which was better than the one they'd back home, but still didn't seem to be enough when more than one mutant turtle had to go. After seeing that Master Splinter had retreated to his designated room to settle in, the boys began tossing the girls out of the rooms they wanted for themselves.

"Hey!" Lenni screeched, as her, Daydream, Mily, and Ziptango were forcefully shoved out of the room they'd staked claim on. "We were here first!"

"Yeah, well, we're older, Runt," Raphael smirked, tossing her bag out into the hallway.

"Raph!" Lenni screamed at him. "Yer gonna break my CDs!"

"Good riddance," Raphael muttered, turning and slamming the door in their faces after Mikey had finished tossing out the rest of the bags.

Michaelangelo shook his head, flopping down on one of the two beds in the room. "You think they'd know by now that this is _our_ room," he commented, placing his arms behind his head to use them as an extra pillow.

"Guess we just don't come here 'nough," Raphael grunted, tossing his bag into a corner and also flopping down onto a bed. He was sure glad April had gotten a few more beds for the bedrooms, though they'd chipped in by making a couple of them.

Michaelangelo laughed. "Try telling that to Leo. He hates trying to get everyone in the van to go. And Sensei always waits until forever, before deciding we could all use a break."

"No shit," Raphael grumbled, closing his eyes and stretching out. He smiled some as he could still hear their sisters arguing over the remaining bedrooms.

"Leo! I'ma kill you!" Machias yelled, after her, Splinter, TygeroftheWynd, and Raphiella had all been tossed out of the room they'd chosen. "You guys don't play fair! You're all bigger and stronger than we are!"

"Exactly," Leonardo smiled. "That's why we always win, or get first choice."

Machias grabbed her bag up purposely smacking their oldest brother with it. "Jerk," she muttered, following the others into one of the other rooms. She became a little happier when she realized just who they got to toss out of the room.

"Guys! Quit it!" Daydream exclaimed, as her stuff was once more thrown out into the hallway.

"Aw, man!" Ziptango and Mily groaned, quickly chasing their bags out into the hall.

"HEY!" Lenni screeched again. "DON'T THROW THAT!"

"Too late," Splinter laughed, tossing the bag out into the hallway, like Raphael had done to it earlier.

Raphiella and TygeroftheWynd snickered as their youngest sister huffed and scooped her bag up once more. They then slammed the door, as their brothers had done to the youngest four earlier.

"Don't even bother trying that room," Ziptango muttered, nodding towards the other one they'd been headed for. "Dance, Punker, Hex, and Ris are in there with Reiko."

"Too late," Mily comment as Lenni's bag was yet again thrown out a bedroom door.

"Well, looks like we get this room again," Ziptango stated, as they entered the last and smallest room.

"Why do we always get the small room!?!" Daydream complained, whining some. "Just 'cause we're the youngest shouldn't mean we get the smallest room all the time!"

The other girls shrugged, as they placed their bags on one of the two beds and began to unpack. While they were unpacking they heard a lone wail of despair and glanced over where it had come from, to find Lenni practically in tears as she held up her now broken CDs.

The three girls winced somewhat, as they all knew just how much the CDs meant to the younger girl – they were what kept her calm when she was about to explode, unless she got to them too late. They also knew just how hard it'd be to get her new ones.

Lenni breathed heavily, trying to control her emotions as best she could, finally snapping when she felt her blood literally boil. "I HATE THIS FAMILY!" She screamed, dropping her stuff onto the bed and tearing on out of the room and down the stairs, and eventually out the front door.

"Great, this vacation is gonna be just great," Mily groaned, flopping onto the bed she was sharing with the youngest turtle girl who'd just left. "She's gonna wreak havoc now all 'cause her CDs got broke."

"Maybe somebody should warn Leo," Daydream spoke softly. "So he won't be too surprised when it happens."

"I don't think anyone's surprised anymore," Ziptango commented, flopping down onto the bed that her and Daydream were sharing. "Let's just get some shut-eye. It's still _way_ too early to be up."

Mily moved the stuff on her bed to the floor, then flopped down on it. "Agreed."

Meanwhile, in the other rooms, some girls were sleeping, while some were having pillow fights.

"You're it!" Arista laughed, smacking Danceingfae with her pillow, careful not to loose hold of her crutches.

"Guys! C'mon! I'm tryin' to sleep here!" HexAdecimal groaned, burying her head under her pillow.

The other three girls grinned, then went over and smacked her with their pillows. "You're it!"

"I'll show you it!" HexAdecimal growled jumping up and chasing them, though giving Arista a bit of a break as she was on crutches and all still.

The girls shrieked and took off running about the room, and soon enough ran downstairs – still shrieking and beating each other with their pillows.

"What's all the ruckus?" Machias asked, peeking her head out of the room she was in, only to be smacked with a pillow by Arista who was hobbling along, trying to catch up to the others.

"Pillow fight!" Arista laughed, as Machias gave her a deadly glare. "C'mon! Get the others!"

Machias grabbed Arista's pillow from her and beat her with it, careful not to knock the other girl over though. "I'll show you pillow fight!"

"Ack! Match! Help! Attack of the pillow!" Arista screeched, trying to block off the attacks as best she could without losing a crutch.

Splinter, Raphiella, and TygeroftheWynd came running out then with their pillows, having had heard the conversation. Splinter tossed Machias her pillow and smirked, as the girl began to beat Arista with both pillows now.

"Hey! Cheater!" Arista cried, ducking some.

Machias laughed and tossed Arista her pillow back. "C'mon! I'll help yah ward off attacks!"

The five girls then ran on downstairs and about the main floor, chasing and smacking one another with their pillows.

"Hey-HEY!" Leonardo exclaimed, as he'd come to see what all the noise was. "Outside with those before you break something!"

He was met with eight pillows hitting him square in his plastron and face. He grabbed them up and immediately started whipping them back as the girls ran outside in their haste to escape. He laughed as he chased them, always managing to hit his target.

Soon enough, Michaelangelo joined Leonardo and the vast majority of their sisters outside in the massive pillow fight. It was great to be able to shriek all they wanted and chase one another around and beat each other with pillows and carefree exuberance.

Eventually, everyone who'd joined in on the pillow fight had collapsed on the ground and were lying on the grass giggling and enjoying the feel of the sun on their green skin. Even Arista had managed to ease herself down onto the ground so that she too could enjoy the feel of grass under her shell, instead of concrete and such. It wasn't often they got to be outside like this, and they'd be damned if they weren't all going to enjoy it!

Hours later, after they'd had lunch, Master Splinter came out to get them started on their afternoon practice. He was glad to see they all seemed to be in high spirits, though he noticed he was missing a child.

"Where is Lenore?" He questioned, raising his brows, as he eyed his pupils.

"Um…well….her CDs kinda got busted earlier, and she took off," Daydream piped up after everyone had stood in silence for well over a minute. "We haven't seen her since, but I really don't think she's gone too far, Sensei."

Master Splinter nodded. "I shall deal with her later. Now, pair up so that we can continue practicing the sparring we were doing back home in the dojo."

Arista grumbled, as she hobbled out of the way, Reiko at her feet. It wasn't fair all she got to do was sit and watch everyone or meditate – though, she wasn't too fond of either when it came right down to it. She took a seat on the grass next to Master Splinter, deciding to watch for a while first, then maybe meditate if she felt she could actually focus on it.

Everyone quickly paired up – Raphael and Leonardo were up against Donatello and Michaelangelo. HexAdecimal and Raphiella paired up quickly, as did their opponents, Machias and TygeroftheWynd. Splinter teamed with Daydream, while Danceingfae and Ziptango paired up to go against them. Meanwhile, TMNTPunker and Mily were to go against one another, as they were minus two sisters for the tag-team sparring that they were currently all working on.

Master Splinter watched each of his pupils carefully, as they sparred and helped their partners out when they felt the need had arisen. He was glad to see they were all putting more of an effort forth than usual – even the ones who generally did quite well had even managed to do better than usual. He figured it must've been due to the fact they were now out in broad daylight, enjoying the sunshine as it radiated down upon them.

Soon enough practice was over, and half the turtle clan ran indoors to fight over the shower, while the other half all ran for the hose to just spray themselves off with. They knew they were going to be outdoors sweating anyway, so why rush for the shower so soon?

Once everyone felt they were clean enough to carry on with their day, they all split up to go and do their own things. Arista sat on the porch swing out on the front deck reading a book, with Reiko lying on the deck floor next to the swing enjoying her company. He was extremely loyal and not about to leave his injured master alone any longer than necessary. Splinter managed to snag Leonardo and went off with him in a back field to do some extra training, as she'd questions about one of the moves she was currently learning. Naturally, Leonardo was quite pleased to see someone else taking great interest in ninjitsu, despite all the wonderful distractions they now had. Michaelangelo had Ziptango, Raphiella, Daydream, and Machias all playing a very weird mixed up game of tag with him. They were playing so that everyone but one person was It, and soon as you tagged that one person, you had ten seconds to run before someone else caught you and made you one of the It people again. It was confusing at times, but still great fun – no matter your age. Raphael had decided to take off into the woods and play follow the leader ninja style, with Danceingfae, TMNTPunker, Mily, and TygeroftheWynd. The five of them were kicking and screaming and climbing things and having a grand old time – especially since it wasn't often Raphael suggested they play such a silly game that they had played since the girls were about eight and nine-years old.

Donatello on the other hand, decided to go for a walk in the woods, to enjoy some quiet time. He'd worry about getting all the electronic things that needed fixing, up and running later on. For once, he was going to take some time for himself and just enjoy nature. What he found instead, was his youngest sister beating a tree with her bo.

"What in the world are you doing?" He asked, startling the young kunoichi.

Lenni jumped when she heard her brother's voice, though that never stopped her from beating her bo staff up against the tree. "Trying to knock a tree down, what does it look like? She snapped irritably.

"To me, it looks like you're trying to break your bo in half, so you'll never have to use it again," Donatello commented.

"Whatta you know," Lenni muttered, beating the tree until Donatello retrieved the wooden weapon from her hands.

"If anyone else catches you disrespecting your bo so badly, you'll be in a great deal of trouble," Donatello informed her. "Do you really wish to be grounded while out here at the farm house?"

"Give that back Donnie! Or I'ma beat you with it!"

Donatello rolled his eyes, tossing it back. "Here, I'd like to see you try."

Lenni growled and immediately attacked, becoming even angrier when her brother kept managing to side-step her each time she swung of charged him. He didn't even have to bother pulling his own bo out, as she was doing that poor of a job with her own.

Back outside of the woods, everyone else was still going about their activities, having a blast just being able to goof off – especially since there was no pressure on them now to act a certain way or do certain things.

"My turn to lead!" Punker exclaimed, tackling Raphael. "You've been leading long enough!"

"No way, Kid," Raphael grunted, shoving her off him. "I'm leader and I decide whose next, not you."

"You never play fair!" Punker argued. "Now I know why we quit playin' this with you!"

"Fine, you wanna lead, then lead!" Raphael retorted, quickly grabbing the younger girl and giving her a rough noogie.

"Oww! Hey!" Punker cried, struggling to get free. "Simon says, Help!"

"Wrong game!" Her sisters laughed, though they did come forward and pounce Raphael for her. "Let her go, Raphie!"

"I'll show yah Raphie!" Raphael growled, letting Punker go and quickly chasing the others.

"Hey! I'm the leader!" Punker yelled as they all took off.

"Change of game!" Danceingfae shrieked, doing her best to dodge their brother in red. "Eep!"

"You're It!" Machias exclaimed, tackling Daydream to the ground.

"Oomph!" Daydream yelped. "It's tag, not tackle football!"

Machias laughed as she got up and quickly took off. "Oh, well, I thought it was tackle tag!"

"Ooh! I'ma get you!" Daydream yelled quickly high-tailing it after her sister who had just recently passed the Trials

Mikey, Ella, and Zip all chased after them, each eager to catch Machias so that they could be relieved of being It.

Splinter shrieked, and stepped on it, as she did _not_ want to be caught again so soon. She charged past Leonardo and Machias, trying to hide behind her brother in blue.

"Machias! We're practicing here!" Leo exclaimed. "Now, git!"

"Aw, Leo!" Machias whined somewhat. "You just gave me away!"

Leonardo shook his head as Machias took off in another direction, the herd of turtles after her quickly following after her in the new direction. "now, where were we?"

"I was about to give up and decide this move just wasn't meant for me to do," Splinter replied.

Leo shook his head. "You can do it, if you put your mind to it."

"What, you think I haven't done that already, Leo?" Splinter snapped angrily. "It's just _too_ hard! I'm _never_ gonna get it! I should've just went off with Raph and them to play follow the leader!"

"Well, why don't we play our own game of that?" Leonardo suggested. "I do the moves and you try and copy exactly what I'm doing, alright?"

"Fine," Splinter grumbled. She watched as he did a few silly moves, causing her to smile some. Who knew Leo had a silly side? She shrugged and copied him easily. "Piece of cake."

"Now, try this," Leonardo stated, doing the move she'd been struggling with all day, after having had done a few more silly things, as well as some ninjitsu moves she knew.

Splinter sighed heavily, and attempted to move like her secretly favourite brother, surprising herself when she actually managed to complete the move.

"I did it!" She said shocked, her expression showing just how shocked. "Wow!"

Leo smiled. "I knew you could," he told her. "You just needed to turn it into a bit of a game, so that you'd relax enough for it."

Splinter impulsively hugged him, though she immediately released him upon realizing she was actually hugging him out where people could see. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy hugging her brothers, it just felt awkward with an audience.

Leonardo laughed and patted her shell. "Way to go. Now, how about we go raid the freezer for some popsicles?"

"I'm there!" Splinter agreed readily, smiling up at him. He was a great brother, and she was glad to have finally been able to steal away some alone time with him – it wasn't too often she got that; in fact, it was next to never.


	14. Relaxing Day

A.N.: Ziptango, Daydream, Raphiella, TygeroftheWynd, Mily and Lenni are all twelve. Danceingfae, Machias, Splinter, HexAdecimal, TMNTPunker, Arista are all thirteen. The guys are eighteen.

Hexadecimal couldn't find Arista anywhere. She had looked in all of the rooms, out in the barn, and in the forest, but the blue-wearing turtle girl had gone missing. Hex stood in the middle of the living room, her arms crossed over her plastron, and tapped her foot angrily.

"Ris!" she shouted, hoping that perhaps she would just yell her sister to her side. "Arista, get your butt down here and come with me!" It sucked living in a family of ninjas; if someone wanted to stay hidden, it was quite likely they would stay that way.

There was no reply to Hex's shouting.

"Well fine! Stay here!" Hex yelled to the ceiling. Growling, she stormed out of the house. She would just go down to the river by herself. Maybe Ziptango or Daydream was already there.

Up in the attic, Arista smirked when she heard Hex's yelling. It wasn't that she didn't want to spend time with her sister; it was just that she wanted to finish what she was working on. Back at the lair, it was hard to get a moment of peace and quiet because everyone was always crowded into the same small space. At the farm house, everyone sort of exploded into every direction and it was harder for them to track her down.

Arista bent over the French horn and started tightening the strings on the back. Many instruments were hard for her to play and to repair since her fingers were not as small or nimble as a human's, but the French horn was a little easier than others.

Its beautiful, mellow tone was easy on the ears and none of her family members yelled at her when she played it. This was a great contrast to whenever she played the clarinet or the flute and her siblings glared and complained until she retreated to the sewers.

Arista had collected a number of musical instruments over the years. Whenever her family went garbage picking, Arista always kept an eye out for instruments that humans had thrown away because they no longer worked.

Often, the instruments only needed a little work until they sounded as good as ever. Of course, it had taken a lot of online studying to get to the point where she was able to fix instruments but it was worth it.

Arista loved hiding off by herself in some corner or hidey-hole and fixing her instruments. It was a passion of hers, and it was definitely more than a hobby. She was considering making a business out of it when she got older by having April or Casey front it and she fix the instruments behind the scenes. It would not be such a bad way to spend her adult life when she wasn't busy being a ninja.

Humming to herself, Arista continued her repairing, Reiko sitting peacefully at her feet. She would find her siblings later, when she felt like it, and not a moment before then.

000000

Most of the other members of the Hamato family were at the river. A game of hide-and-seek had already started between some of the girls and Michelangelo, who had been violently coerced into playing. If you listened closely you could hear him grumbling from his hiding spot; that was often how he was found.

Lenni was another one who was easy to find; she always giggled when someone got close to her, so she was often found first or second, to her great dismay. The other members of the family were spread out along the edge of the river, cane poles in hand.

"I'm bored," Daydream complained. She was sitting at Leonardo's feet, dangling her legs over the edge of the bank. The river lapped up and tickled her toes, but she was reluctant to get in the water with so many fishing poles around. Not to mention they would yell at her if she tried it. Lenni already had, and everyone had yelled at her until she had gotten out and started the hide-and-seek game.

"Then go play with the others," Leonardo suggested. He just wanted some peaceful fishing time, not to be bugged by his little sister.

"I don't want to," she said stubbornly. She put her feet deeper into the water and smirked back at him. "I want to go swimming."

"You'll scare the fish away," Leo told her. She rolled her eyes at him.

"Your face scares the fish away."

"Do you have to be such a pain?"

"Only when you're such a loser," she replied, grinning at him. She loved being a smart aleck; it was a growing skill of hers. It was the only Raphael-esque trait she had taken on, and her other brothers were determined to keep her that way. It was better than Lenni who was turning herself into a mini-Raphael.

Leonardo rolled his eyes and decided to ignore her. She usually got bored when you did not pay attention to her. Sure enough, in a few minutes, Daydream got up and danced away, hopefully to go find someone else to bother. Maybe she would annoy Raphael.

Mily sat cross-legged in the grass beside Donatello, watching him fish. The older, purple-bandanna'd turtle had a special made fishing pole that he had created that morning. Unlike the others, his was not made of bamboo. Instead, he had taken a young tree and stripped it, fixed a reel to it and added eyelets for his fishing line to through. On his other side, five fish were lined up on the ground.

"Donny, do you like fishing?" she asked, pushing her pink bandana tails back over her shoulder. Donny smiled down at her and nodded.

"Why?" she asked.

Donny looked back toward the river, pondering the question. "Hmm, it's rather relaxing. It's not…intense like working with machines is. I don't know," he said, shrugging her shoulders.

Mily grinned as another fish was pulled out of the river and laid beside the others. Donny really was good at fishing. Very unlike Raphael. She leaned forward and glanced downriver at where Raphael was standing in an attack position. One sai was pulled back toward his ear and aimed at the river while the other was held by his side.

Raphael's eyes were trained on the river, darting back and forth as he watched something beneath the shimmering waves. Suddenly, he let out a shout and flung his sai into the water. He jumped into the water after his sai and plunged his hand into the water after it.

"DAMN!" he cursed as he pulled up an empty sai.

"Nice going, Raph," Leonardo said, rolling his eyes, "You succeeded in scaring all the fish away."

"Shut up, Leo," Raphael snapped, pointing a sai at his brother.

"Patience, my son," Master Splinter called. The elderly mutant was crouching in the middle of the stream, his hands deep in the water. His eyes were closed and his ears twitched occasionally.

"It ain't that easy, Master Splinter!" Raphael complained. He slogged back out of the river and onto the bank. Just when he turned back around to face the river, Master Splinter drew his hands out of the river, sending water droplets into the sky. Wriggling in his sure grip was a trout, its scales like a rainbow in the sunlight.

"It is not easy," Master Splinter said as he walked toward the bank. He put the fish on the ground beside Raphael and smiled at him with wise eyes, "But patience succeeds in the end." Raphael grumbled something, but his eyes stayed on the fish.

Machias was hiding in a patch of tall grasses, waiting for someone to find her. She had not been found yet so she had not yet had a catch at being It. She was starting to think that she was either lucky or a better ninja than she thought. Grinning, she crouched down farther in the grass as she heard someone coming toward her.

She peeked over and saw that Lenni was stomping through the trees, her arms crossed over her plastron and a fierce scowl on her face. No doubt she had been found again and made it. It seemed like every other turn was her turn. Machias considered coming out of her hiding spot just to give Lenni a break then thought better of it.

She did not want to break her winning streak; Mikey would be proud of her if she was able to stay away from being it the entire game. Instead, she started a slow but steady commando crawl away from Lenni.

Lenni kicked at the ground, sending a clump of grass into the air. She was tired and frustrated with being It over and over again. It really sucked. And there had been a couple times when she had not caught anyone and they had all made it to base before she could get them. Growling, she clenched her hands into fists and stormed through the trees, determined to find a sibling.

She spotted Hexadecimal wandering through the trees, heading toward the river and where their home base was. Lenni scowled; if Hex was just prancing through the woods, it meant that she did not have any confidence in Lenni's ninja skills. Lenni would show her though.

Hex was heading down to the river to catch up with the others when she heard someone running toward her through the woods. She turned just in time to deflect her smallest, blue and yellow bandana'd sister and toss her over her head. Lenni landed on her backside, but she jumped up quickly, victory on her face.

"I tagged you, Hex! You're it now!" Lenni declared.

Hex stared at her. "I'm not playing, Lenni. What are you talking about?"

Lenni's face fell and she could feel herself growing angry again. "Whaddaya mean you're not playing? We're playing hide-n-seek."

"I'm not," Hex snorted, "I just got here."

Lenni's face went hot and she glared at the ground. Hex frowned and put her hands on her hips. "Lenni, you okay?"

Lenni let out a frustrated shout and shoved past her sister. She glared at the forest, knowing that probably everyone who was playing hide-n-seek was watching her and laughing. "I'M NOT PLAYING ANYMORE! I HATE THIS GAME!"

She marched herself off through the forest, not caring if someone tried to stop her. Let them dare. She'd show them the couple moves she knew.

Ziptango jumped out of her hiding spot and looked over at Hexadecimal who was standing there, confused.

"What crawled up her ass?" Hex asked, watching their sister crash through the foliage, taking out a few ferns and brush plants as she went.

Ziptango let out a low whistle and shrugged. "It's Lenni. She doesn't really need a reason to act out. She just does it."

Hex shook her head, "Brat." At that moment, both Tyger and Raphiella jumped out of the bushes at her, tackling her to the ground.

"HAHA! ELEMENT OF SURPRISE!" shouted Ella, tickling her older sister's sides.

"ATTACK THE NON-BELIEVER!" roared Tyger.

Together they fought off Hex who had begun a retaliation sequence. Beside the wrestling trio, Ziptango rolled her eyes. Violence was so last year.

As Lenni stomped past his hiding spot, Michelangelo came out, shaking his head. Lenni always seemed to get the short stick. He loped after her and then walked beside her as she made her way through the forest.

"So, where're we going?" Mikey asked, grinning down at her. Lenni shot him a glare.

"I don't know where I'm going, but it's away from you," she snapped.

"Huh. That's not going to be any fun," Mikey replied. Lenni stopped and put her hands on her waist and stared at him imperiously.

"And why's that?" She demanded.

Mikey beamed his goofiest smile and put his thumb to his plastron, "Because I'm where the fun's at."

Lenni stared at him for a minute then cracked a smile. "You're such a goofball."

Mikey grinned at her happily. "Yeah, but it got you to smile."

Lenni grumbled and kept up her aggravated march through the forest. Mikey walked beside her, his arms clasped behind his head.

"You lookin' forward to the bonfire tonight?" he asked, glancing down at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Bonfires are for babies," Lenni said, but he could see the excited gleam in her eyes. Lenni loved bonfires as much as the next person and they had planned a big one for that night.

Later in the afternoon, he, Leo, Raph, and Don were going to chop firewood while the younger ones gathered fallen wood from the forest. It was going to be their biggest bonfire yet, and everyone was excited, even Lenni.

"Well, then I'm a big baby because I'm pumped about it," Mikey said. He grinned and pushed her gently on the shoulder. "And just because you're grumpy doesn't mean you can't enjoy the bonfire, dudette."

"That don't make sense," Lenni said, frowning at him. "And I'm not grumpy."

"Could've fooled me."

"I'm mad."

Mikey rolled his eyes. "Grumpy, mad, same thing."

"Not to me," Lenni said. "Grumpy's when you wake up on the wrong side of the bed. Mad is when someone makes you get in a bad mood."

"Oh," Mikey said, sort of understanding the logic, "So I guess the hide-n-seek game put you in a bad mood?"

"Yeah," Lenni grumbled, "You might've guessed right."

"You shouldn't let it get to you like that," Mikey advised, "It's just a game."

"No it isn't!" She insisted. She kicked at the ground and crossed her arms over her chest, "It's nothing like that 'cause it matters. It's got ninja skills and I ain't got none. I ain't like everyone else, and it ain't fair!"

"Well, then shouldn't you try practicing harder, rather than trying to break your Bo in half?" Mikey suggested casually, continuing when he saw her questioning look. "Yeah, Donnie told me all about that. You're lucky he found you and not anyone else."

"Whatever," Lenni muttered, trying to act indifferent. "It don't matter if it breaks or not – it's not like I can use the stupid thing the way Donnie can."

"Again I ask, then shouldn't you try harder?"

"I _do_ try!" Lenore exploded angrily, frustrated tears springing to her eyes. "But it's _too_ hard! I'm _doing_ the best I can, and my _best_ just _isn't_ good enough for _anyone_!"

000000

"What the…..GAH!" Leo exclaimed, as he went tumbling into the river in which he was currently fishing. "Dagnabit! There goes the fish!"

He glared up at the sister whom was standing there smirking down at him, a smug look worn upon her face.

"Have a nice fall, Leo?" Splinter asked amusedly, her arms crossed over her chest. "Not such a great ninja when fishing, now are you?"

"Well, when everyone asks why there's no fish for dinner, I'll just tell them it's your fault," Leo shrugged, standing up and catching himself as he slipped on a rock. "And _then_ we'll see just who gets thrown in."

"Ha. Fat chance," Splinter laughed, enjoying egging him on. "It's your fault for not being the great ninja you supposedly are."

"If I'm not a great ninja, then how come I can do this?" Leo asked, moving at super ninja speed and picking Splinter up and tossing her in. "_Now_ whose not such a great ninja? Hmm?"

Splinter spluttered, as she struggled to keep afloat. "Hey! I wasn't supposed to end up wet too!"

"Oh, yay! We can go swimming now!" Daydream cheered, as she came running over.

Leo rolled his eyes at her, as she cheered again about getting her way, without really having to try.

"Cannon ball!" A voice shouted then, and they all looked only to see Mily doing just what she'd called out, into the river. "Whoot!"

A few moments later, half the girls were in the river, laughing and shrieking about, as they kept trying to splash and dunk one another.

"Well, I'm glad you're all having fun," Leo commented. "But what are we supposed to do about our dinner?"

"Oh, Leo, you worry too much," Danceingfae waved him off, as she turned to dunk Punker. "Besides, Sensei's caught a bunch, if you'd look over by Raph."

Leo glanced over towards their brother in red, unable to help but smirk, as he saw him grumbling quietly about how Master Splinter had showed him up in the fishing department.

"Guess that leaves me to do only one thing then," Leo stated calmly.

"And what's that?"

"This," Leo smiled, as he jumped in, splashing his five sisters in doing so.

The girls all shrieked and swam away from him quickly, as he chased after them, to try and dunk them all.

"Raph, get in here and help me!" Leo called out to his brother, whom was still standing next to the pile of fish, watching them all in amusement.

"Got not problem with that Leo," Raph smirked, running and jumping into the river as well. "Git back here yah Brats, so I c'n drown yah!"

"Raph, you _can't_ drown a turtle!" Danceingfae laughed, as she swam far away from him as she could. "Turtles _live_ in water, remember?"

"I think he must've missed that class," Daydream giggled, as she dodged Leo. "Nyah! Nyah! You can't catch me!"

"Yanno, you Brats are still as annoying as yah were when you were eight an' nine years old!" Raph growled menacingly, as he managed to catch Mily and dunk her under. "Hah! Gotcha!"

"And _we've_ got you!" Splinter and Punker exclaimed, as they both dunked Raph under the water's surface. Though, soon as he was dunked, they took off as thought their lives depended on it.

"I'ma get you for that!" Raph roared as he surfaced quickly.

The girls all shrieked once more, as Raph began to chase whoever he felt was closest to him. They also were careful to avoid Leo, who was still also trying to catch them and dunk them. Who knew their brothers – one stubborn as hell, the other bossy as hell – could work together and have fun?

"Kids," Master Splinter chuckled from his spot on the riverbank.

"Good thing we're out here and not in the city," Donnie remarked. "Or we'd have been found out long ago."

"Yes, that we would have," Master Splinter agreed. "But, it is nice to see all of you relaxed and enjoying yourselves. It is not often Leonardo and Raphael team up together to play with your sisters."

"No, it's not," Donnie replied, smiling some. "I like that about being out here. Some things, like Lenni's temper, stay the same; and then some things, like Raph and Leo willingly playing games, are sort of new every time because of how rarely that happens."

"Exactly," Master Splinter nodded his head, as he kept an eye on his children messing around in the river.

000000

"Well, that's the last of them," Arista sighed, as she eyed the few instruments she'd brought and managed to fix. Of course, she'd fixed her French horn first, as it was by far her favourite. "You think we should go join everybody now, Reiko?"

The dog lying at her feet gave a small half bark in response, as his tail wagged happily. He was always quite content to be wherever his master decided they ought to be, so long as he had her with him.

Arista smiled at her furry friend. "Let's get going then," she smiled, reaching over to pat his head.

She carefully stood, her busted leg in a softer cast now, as Donnie had finally been able to get the proper things for it. She groaned slightly though, as she realized she'd left her crutches down in the bathroom.

"Oh, well," she sighed. "I got up here okay, so getting down should be just as easy, right Reiko?"

Once more, Reiko wagged his tail and gave a soft _ruff_, as he watched her struggle to get to her feet.

"Okay, that's the _last_ time I sit on the floor with a busted leg," she exclaimed, soon as she was in a standing position. "Phew! What a work-out."

She gave a small laugh at herself, as she shook her head. "Let's go, boy."

Reiko stood then, and trotted on over to the stairway that would drop down at the tug of a rope that hung from the ceiling. He watched his master warily, as she hobbled on over to where he was, holding onto anything she could manage to grab and steady herself with.

Upon reaching the stairs, Arista tugged on the rope that would cause the stairs to drop so she'd be able to climb down. She loved that about the old farm house – thanks to Donnie, the stairs worked much better than they had years before. Years before, her and some of her sisters had gotten stuck up in the attic, hence being why some of them refused to go up there at all now.

Soon enough, both Arista and Reiko were back down on the upstairs floor where the bedrooms and bathroom were. They made their way to the bathroom, where Arista fetched her crutches, then they continued on their way downstairs to the kitchen for a bite to eat.

"You must be starved by now," Arista said to her four-legged friend. "We haven't eaten anything since everyone got up to practice this morning."

She set about getting Reiko some scraps, then grabbed an apple from the refrigerator for herself. After Reiko had finished scarfing down his snack, the two of them headed on out into the yard, Arista still munching on her apple, as she used her crutches to move along her merry way.

"Find them Reiko," Arista told the dog at her side. "Go find Leo."

Reiko sniffed the air a moment, then stuck his nose to the ground and began to sniff out her eldest brother.

"Good boy," she praised, as she followed him into the woods towards the riverbank.

000000

"So, what do you guys wanna do now?" Ziptango asked her sisters, as they all sat leaning up against trees in the woods they'd been playing in. "I mean, I think we're all tired of hide 'n' seek by now."

"I still can't believe you were never found Match," Raphiella smirked, shaking her head.

"Watch it," Machias warned. "And what's not to believe? Lenni was it most of the time."

"Good point!" Tyger laughed. "It's a wonder she ever found any of us at all!"

"Well, she found me," Hex stated. "Only, I wasn't playing. And if I _had_ been playing, she still wouldn't have gotten me, as I heard her coming from a mile away! That girl just does _not_ know how or when to be quiet!"

The five of them laughed some, then grew quiet, as they tried to think of something to do.

"We could always go swimming," Raphiella suggested.

"Nah," Tyger sighed, waving her off. "I bet everyone else is doing that right now, and it gets rather crowded when we all go in at once."

"Hey! I know!" Ziptango piped up excitedly. "We could share secrets! I mean, it's been a while since we've done that, and some of us _have_ to have some new ones by now, right?"

"Sure!" The others agreed.

"We just better keep an ear out for intruders," Hexadecimal warned. "Or some of us might end up in some serious trouble or something."

"So who wants to go first?" Ziptango asked, eyeing each of her sisters in turn.

"Well, _you're_ the one, who suggested it, so why don't _you_ go first?" Tyger stated.

"Okay, sure," Ziptango nodded. "Just let me think of something."

"And here I thought, because you suggested it, you already had a secret in mind," Hexadecimal laughed.

Ziptango shrugged. "Well, the only thing I can think of right now is when I snuck out a couple weeks ago, to go scavenging."

"You went _alone_?!" Raphiella exclaimed in surprise.

"Yup," Ziptango nodded. "I wanted to see if I could find some more drumsticks and stuff, and Donnie never stays long enough for me to take a good look. He always seems to find what he's looking for straight away, and then, of course, he wants to come home so he can do whatever with it."

"And you got past _Leo_?!" Tyger said, her jaw dropping in shock. "_No one_ has _ever_ managed to do that, except for on the rare occasion!"

"I'd say you're _definitely_ ready for the Trials," Hexadecimal smirked. "I mean, anyone who can get past _Leo_, just _has_ to be ready for them, right?"

Her sisters all nodded in agreement, as Ziptango blushed slightly and looked away some.

"Yeah, well, Tyger's next in line after Splinter, not me," she reminded them. "Then Ella, and _then_ me, and then Mily, Day, and Lenni."

Hex gave a snort at the mention of Lenni taking the Trials, as Tyger and Ella scoffed slightly.

"Well, they're why I've started sleep walking," Tyger admitted suddenly.

"You have?" Ella replied, raising an eye ridge at her. "Really?"

"Yeah," Tyger nodded slightly. "I mean, I _know_ my turn won't be for a while yet, but just the fact that they _are_ coming, is stressing me out. I don't know how Splinter can just be so relaxed and calm and stuff about them, while I'm here freaking out, and it's not even _my_ turn yet."

"Maybe she is, but just not showing it?" Ziptango told her with a small shrug. "I mean, we don't all show how we feel about them aloud usually – except Lenni, but she's the only exception."

"Yeah, maybe," Tyger sighed heavily. "I just don't like the fact that I'm sleep walking, and hate it even more that I only found out I was 'cause _Raph_ of _all_ people caught me!"

"Oh, wow! I'm surprised he didn't give you nightmares!" Ziptango teased. "Heck, maybe _he's_ why you're sleep walking – he prolly scared you horribly, while you were already sleep walking and you just don't know it."

Tyger laughed some. "Yeah, I can just see him getting all peeved with me for not answering him or something, when really I've no idea what I'm doing at the moment."

"Haha. Someone ought to video tape you, just to see the look on his face," Ella giggled. "That'd be pretty funny."

"Yeah, but at Tyger's expense," Hex snorted.

They all laughed then, as they continued to go on about Raphael putting up with sleep walkers, as well as their secrets game.

000000

Mikey raised his eye ridges at his youngest sister, not sure whether to believe her about practices being too hard or not. Though, then he took a moment to consider all of what she knew ninjitsu wise, and realized, she _had_ to be telling the truth. Otherwise, her lack of ninjitsu just didn't make any sense – he always figured there was something more to it, than her just not wanting to be a ninja. But maybe…just maybe…she always had wanted to be ninja, but was just unable to keep up, thus making her feel left out, so she chose to rebel rather than have to flat out admit defeat.

"Why didn't you ever tell Sensei then?" He questioned, eyeing her carefully. "If he knew, he'd more than likely go easier on you, Kiddo."

Lenni's eyes went huge, as she suddenly realized she just _blown_ her secret! The secret she'd managed to keep all these years, though she always seemed to blab all her other ones. But, her fear of Master Splinter knowing she couldn't keep up, is what made her keep it. Yes, she knew she'd no real reason to fear their father, and yet, she just couldn't help but do so anyway when it came to ninjitsu.

"Lenni?" Mikey pried, as he mentally took note of her body language.

"I – just – never mind," Lenni said finally, turning to walk away from her understanding brother in orange.

"I will _not_ just never mind," Mikey insisted. "Now, tell me what's going on inside that little green head of yours."

000000

Meanwhile, back at the riverbank, Leo and Raph had gotten out of the water, and had begun getting the necessities to chop some wood for their bonfire. They'd noted it was starting to get late in the day, and with a bonfire as big as the one they wanted to have, they knew it was best to get started on preparing it a bit early.

While his brothers were preparing to go chop some wood, Donatello was currently gutting the fish they'd caught for dinner. He wasn't a great cook, but he was the best at gutting them out, after Michaelangelo of course.

The five girls who'd been swimming, were also helping to prepare for the bonfire. Daydream, and Mily had started fetching small twigs and such for kindling, while splinter had gone off in search of good sticks to roast marshmallows and such on. Danceingfae and Punker had decided to help Donnie with the fish, though both were making grossed out faces as they did so.

"Okay, if this fish bleeds on me _once_ more!" Punker exclaimed angrily. "It's going to be chop suey!"

"Patience, my daughter," Master Splinter spoke from his spot on the grass nearby. "Only then will you achieve what you want done."

Punker growled slightly. "I have patience, just _not_ when a _stupid_ fish decides to get all _gross_ on me!"

Danceingfae snickered some, as she tossed a freshly gutted fish into the one bucket they had nearby, full of already gutted fish.

"Oh, shut it over there!" Punker told her, doing her best to hide the smirk that wanted to arise upon her face. "Let's just get this done and over with. I'm starved."

"Are we having anything other than fish, Sensei?" Donnie asked, as he began to gut another fish.

"Yes, we are having some beans, hot dogs, and some berries, if the girls in the woods remember to pick any while they are there," Master Splinter answered, then continued with a small smile. "And I made sure to bring some rice you can make over a fire for Lenore, since she will not eat the fish, beans, or fire cooked hot dogs."

Donnie shook his head then. "Picky," he stated. "Though, I _do_ love that rice!"

Danceingfae and Punker nodded their agreement, as they both tossed a fish into the bucket in unison, causing them both to laugh at their weird moment of unity.


End file.
